In a recent development, the Ukrainian military confirmed that they had targeted two large Russian landing ships in their attacks on the annexed Crimean peninsula. Along with the landing ships, a communications center and other infrastructure used by the Russian navy in the Black Sea were also hit in the assault.
Although the exact method used to hit these targets was not specified in the statement, a Moscow-installed official in the region mentioned a significant Ukrainian air attack. The official also stated that the air defences managed to intercept and shoot down over 10 missiles over the Crimean port of Sevastopol.
According to the Ukrainian military, “The defense forces of Ukraine successfully hit the Azov and Yamal large landing ships, a communications center, and several other infrastructure facilities of the Russian Black Sea Fleet in temporarily occupied Crimea.”
Mikhail Razvozhayev, the Russian-installed governor of Sevastopol, provided further details on the attack through the Telegram messaging app. He mentioned that the transport infrastructure, including passenger boats, suffered partial damage as a result of the assault.
Razvozhayev added that out of the six boats affected, five had their windows broken. He also noted that during the day, the damaged boats would undergo repairs and be brought back online as they were restored.
Additionally, three passenger buses, 13 school buses, and one trolley bus were among the vehicles damaged during the overnight attacks, as reported by Razvozhayev.
As of now, Reuters was unable to immediately verify the extent of the damage caused by the Ukrainian military’s attacks on the Russian targets in Crimea.
It is a developing situation, and more information is expected to emerge in the coming days regarding the aftermath of the assault on the Russian naval infrastructure in Crimea.
(Reporting by Pavel Polityuk; Writing by Tom Balmforth; Editing by David Goodman and Louise Heavens)
