Russia-Ukraine war: two drones shot down near Crimean bridge – as it happened

A summary of today’s developments

• Explosions were reported in Kerch near the Crimean Bridge that connects Russian-occupied Crimea with Russia. The Russian-appointed head of Crimea said Russian air defence was able to shoot down two missiles in the first attack, and then another one, and that there was no damage. Footage and photos show smoke billowing up from the bridge, which Russian officials said was a smokescreen for workers. This comes after an explosion in October shut down both the road bridge and rail bridge for months.

• The Russian foreign ministry decried Ukraine’s attacks on the Crimean Bridge as “terrorist attacks” on “civilian infrastructure” – even though Russian forces have repeatedly targeted civilian infrastructure since the beginning of the invasion, conducting air strikes on power grids, dams, parks, schools, private homes, churches and hotels.

• The attacks on the Crimean Bridge took place hours after Russian forces said they downed 20 Ukrainian drones targeting the Crimean peninsula. This comes amid a new campaign of drone strikes targeting Moscow in recent days as Kyiv works to keep the Kremlin’s war in the hearts and minds of the Russian elites and others seeking to ignore the invasion.

• Two people were injured by Russian forces today in the Kherson oblast, where “the shelling has not stopped since morning”, said the regional governor, Oleksandr Prokudin. A 70-year-old man suffered multiple injuries after a projectile hit a residential building in Poniativka, while a 72-year-old man was seriously injured from explosives dropped from a drone in Odradokamyanka, Prokudin said.

• A Su-30 fighter jet crashed during a training flight in Russia’s Kaliningrad region, killing the two pilots on board, according to the RIA news agency.

• Two people have been killed in Russian attacks in the Zaporizhzhia and Kharkiv oblasts. A police officer was killed and 12 people were injured in a guided Russian aerial bomb attack on Orikhov, while an elderly woman was killed early on Saturday morning due to shelling by Russian troops on Kupiansk-Vuzlovyi village in Kupiansk district.

• In the village of Lazurne in the Russian-occupied part of the Kherson oblast, residents will not be able to receive medicines like insulin or humanitarian aid if they do not apply for a Russian passport.

• Odesa, a Black Sea city famed for its beautiful shoreline, has opened several beaches for the first time since Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022. Throughout the past year, suspicious objects and mines were routinely washing up along the coast, creating a hazard for beachgoers.