Several pillars of a structure near Melitopol were damaged in an explosion, local officials have said
A highway bridge located near the city of Melitopol in Russia’s Zaporozhye Region was damaged in an explosion late on Monday, the local authorities have reported. The officials called the incident a “sabotage attack.”
The blast in the region bordering Ukraine took place around 22:00 local time, a statement by Zaporozhye’s administration said, adding that “several pillars of the bridge were damaged.” Traffic across the bridge was halted following the incident, the authorities stated.
Several videos published on social media by Vladimir Rogov, a senior regional official, showed the roadway on the bridge sagging down in at least one place. A loud bang can also be heard on another of Rogov’s videos purporting to show the moment of the blast.
Read more
On his Telegram channel, Rogov blamed the attack on Ukrainian “terrorists.”
The bridge is part of a road linking Melitopol to the port city of Berdyansk located on the Azov Sea.
Zaporozhye Region, together with three other former Ukrainian territories, joined Russia after holding referendums this fall.
In late November, Russia’s Federal Security Service (FSB) claimed to have foiled a terror plot in Zaporozhye. The suspects planned to detonate a bomb at a market in Melitopol, according to the FSB. At least three Ukrainian nationals were arrested in connection with the plot.
RT (Russia Today) is a state-owned news organization funded by the Russian government. The information provided by this news source is being included by the Libertarian Hub not as an endorsement of the Russian government, but rather because it is being actively censored by Big Tech, Western governments and the corporate press. During times of conflict it is imperative that we have access to both sides of the story so we can form our own opinions, even if both sides are spewing their own propaganda. The censorship of RT, despite likely being a propaganda outfit for the Russian government, reduces our ability to hear one side of the conflict. For that reason, the Libertarian Hub will temporarily republish the RSS feed from RT. Visit https://rt.com