The Ukrainian Security Service (SBU) declared a “state of emergency” on Tuesday following a large underwater bomb targeting a bridge connecting Russia and Crimea.
The surprise detonation comes just days after Ukraine launched “Operation Spider’s Web,” a series of coordinated drone strikes deep into Russian territory that are thought to have downed dozens of Russia’s most powerful bomber jets and surveillance planes as they sat idle on five military airfields.
“Illegal objects of the Russian Federation have no place on the territory of our state. The Crimean Bridge is therefore an absolutely legitimate target, especially given that the enemy used it as a logistical artery to secure their troops,” SBU Lt. Gen. Vasily Malyuk said in a statement. “Crimea is Ukraine, and any manifestations of the occupation will receive our harsh response.”
The SBU said it detonated around 2,500 pounds of underwater explosives along the Kerch Bridge.
Malyuk supervised the operation, which took months of planning, according to the SBU.
“The bridge is in a state of emergency,” it declared.
Traffic across the Kerch Bridge was delayed for three hours this morning, according to The Associated Press.
The bridge reportedly reopened before it closed a second time.
The SBU said no civilians were hurt in the blast.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy also said Tuesday that Russia launched a “savage strike” on the northeastern Ukrainian city of Sumy, “directly targeting the city and its ordinary streets with rocket artillery.
Zelenskyy added that one shell was a dud, but it “pierced the wall of an ordinary apartment room on the 9th floor” and “That alone says everything one needs to know about Russia’s so-called ‘desire’ to end this war.”
