Putin’s revenge: Massive missile and drone strike hits Ukrainian cities after furious Russian leader vowed to make Kyiv pay for attack on Crimean bridge
- Worst-hit were port cities Odessa and Mykolaiv, where a huge inferno was seen
Vladimir Putin made good on his promise to avenge the Crimean Bridge attack last night, launching a massive missile and drone bombardment of Ukrainian cities.
The worst-hit were the southern port cities Odessa, where infrastructure was damaged, and Mykolaiv, where a huge inferno was seen.
Russian forces deployed both Kalibr missiles and Iranian-made Shahed drones, according to reports.
Ukraine’s air force said all six Kalibr missiles and 31 out of 36 drones, were shot down overnight. The missiles and most of the drones were downed over Odesa and Mykolaiv, while the rest were destroyed over the eastern regions of Donetsk, Kharkiv and Dnipropetrovsk.
The barrage came soon after a televised threat of retaliation by Putin over the attack on his £3 billion bridge, which is used to transport military supplies to Crimea.
Video shows a huge inferno rising over a southern port city of Ukraine last night
Pictures show fires burning after Russia launched drone strikes in retaliation for the Crimea bridge attack
A part of a Russian cruise missile Kalibr inside a building damaged during a Russian missile and drone strikes
‘Naturally, Russia’s response will follow,’ he said.
‘The Defence Ministry is working on relevant proposals.’
The bridge attack ‘is yet another terrorist act of the Kyiv regime’, he alleged.
The fire in Mykolaiv at an unspecified facility was ‘quite serious’, said Mayor Oleksandr Senkevich.
One downed drone reportedly had a part showing it was made in Ireland, despite Western and specifically EU sanctions.
Russia reportedly also sent warships into the Black Sea and a submarine – Varshavyanka – was seen slipping its moorings from South Bay in Sevastopol. The vessel carries four Kalibr missiles.
In Odessa, Ukraine ordered residents to stay in shelters.
A military spokesman told residents: ‘Thank you all for your endurance.’
Crimea, which has been occupied by Russia since 2014, also came under fire from Ukrainian drones.
The Putin-installed proxy head of the region, Sergey Aksyonov, claimed 28 drones were downed over the occupied peninsula.
Vladimir Putin vowed revenge following the Crimea Bridge attack. Pictured attending a meeting yesterday
Russia reopened the bridge with limited flows of traffic on the undamaged lanes
‘Air defences shot down nine unmanned aerial vehicles, and 19 more were neutralised with electronic warfare means,’ he said.
‘There are no casualties.’
In the Kremlin, there was fury over the bridge attack, it has emerged.
Putin is reported to have turned on the FSB security service for failing to prevent the incoming ‘set-ski’ marine drones which hit the crossing with two explosions early on Monday.
‘In May….the FSB of the Russian Federation was instructed to urgently strengthen control over the prevention and suppression of possible new attacks, including those using unmanned submarines, on large water bodies, in particular the Crimean Bridge,’ reported VChK-OGPU Telegram channel.
‘Despite this, a new explosion.’
There would be a ‘harsh debriefing’ for the security service, reported the channel.
Damage to a building following Russian air strikes on Ukrainian cities overnight
This comes after up to 11 Russian generals are missing – fired, suspended, detained or missing as Putin seeks to apportion blame for his failing but costly war against Ukraine.
Early today there were major queues to reach the Crimean Bridge as tourists defied the threats of more explosions and sought to reach their chosen holiday destination in the annexed Black Sea peninsula.
But queues were also seen seeking to leave Crimea, for example on a road through the war zone towards Mariupol.
Russia reopened the bridge with limited flows of traffic on the undamaged lanes.
‘The movement of cars has resumed in reverse mode on the rightmost lane of the Crimean Bridge from Taman to Kerch,’ said Russian deputy premier Marat Khusnullin.
Long queues form at the Crimean Bridge as Russia restarts traffic with tourists still determined to reach the peninsula despite warnings from Ukraine
Every effort had been made to reopen the bridge to traffic ‘as soon as possible’, he said.
‘We carried out a preliminary examination of the span structures, which confirmed that their condition made it possible to launch traffic.’
Many tourists leaving Crimea were using an alternative land route with frequent military checkpoints through Russian-occupied Zaporizhzhia.
Travel agencies reported many cancellations of bookings after the bridge explosions – even though thousands were seeking to cross to Crimea today.
Putin on Monday made clear that Russia was not continuing the grain deal allowing Ukraine to export food to the world’s most needy countries.
Both Odessa and Mykolaiv – targeted overnight by Russia – are the ports used to export grain.
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