A Russian strike hit the Northern Bridge in Kyiv, according to Mayor Vitali Klitschko, damaging the road surface and trolleybus overhead wires. The bridge links the eastern and western parts of the capital, and it joins the Southern Bridge as the second major crossing now damaged by Russian attacks.
Klitschko wrote on Telegram on Saturday: “Hitting the North Bridge. Emergency services are on their way.” He added that traffic on the bridge from the left to the right bank was currently blocked.
Neither bridge had been hit before Thursday’s strikes. Since then, the Southern Bridge has been targeted multiple times by Russian drones. Kyiv’s defence council held a crisis meeting on Friday following those earlier attacks.
The Strikes on the Southern Bridge
The Southern Bridge has been targeted multiple times by Russian drones since Thursday. Klitschko said the attacks were “tearing Kyiv apart,” and that the city was now in a “very dramatic situation” as Moscow was battering its “critical infrastructure, logistics, housing” and other key facilities.
During that meeting, Klitschko warned that intensified Russian drone and missile strikes were tearing the city apart.
The Strike on the Northern Bridge
Saturday brought the second major blow. A Russian strike hit the Northern Bridge, damaging the road surface and trolleybus overhead wires. Emergency services are on their way to the scene.
Klitschko’s Telegram post on Saturday confirmed the damage. He noted that traffic on the bridge from the left to the right bank was currently blocked.
Kyiv’s Crisis Meeting
Kyiv’s defence council held a crisis meeting on Friday following the earlier attacks on the Southern Bridge. During that meeting, Klitschko warned that intensified Russian drone and missile strikes were tearing the city apart.
He described the situation as “very dramatic,” and he named the targets: critical infrastructure, logistics, housing and other key facilities.
Putin’s Response
Russian President Vladimir Putin responded, saying Russia is acting in response to Ukraine’s strikes on Russian energy facilities. Putin made this statement despite Moscow having first launched such attacks.
The sequence of events, as the paper can establish:
- Thursday: Russian strikes hit the Southern Bridge, targeting it multiple times with drones.
- Friday: Kyiv’s defence council holds a crisis meeting after the Southern Bridge strikes.
- Saturday: A Russian strike hits the Northern Bridge, damaging the road surface and trolleybus overhead wires.
- Saturday: Klitschko posts on Telegram about the strike and the emergency response.
“Hitting the North Bridge. Emergency services are on their way.”
The bridges link the eastern and western parts of the capital.
What This Means for Kyiv
The strikes have closed traffic on the Northern Bridge from the left to the right bank. Emergency services are on their way to the scene.
Klitschko’s warning that Moscow is targeting critical infrastructure signals Kyiv’s view that the strikes go beyond simple retaliation. The city’s leadership sees the attacks as part of a broader campaign against its infrastructure, logistics and housing.
The conflict continues, and the bridges remain under threat.
See the a run of 35 images at the BBC.
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