Russian proxy head in occupied Crimea claims cruise missile shot down near Kerch Bridge
Photo: Telegram / Petro Andriushchenko
Russian-backed proxy head in occupied Crimea, Sergei Aksyonov, claimed on Telegram on July 9 that the air defense downed a cruise missile near Kerch.
Traffic was temporarily suspended on the Kerch bridge linking Crimea to mainland Russia after air defenses shot down a cruise missile on Sunday, according to Russian-appointed officials.
The so-called head of Crimea, Sergei Aksyonov, claims that "air defense forces shot down a cruise missile." He said that there were no damages or casualties.
Recently, explosions have become more frequent in Crimea and other regions of Ukraine under Russian occupation. They are usually linked to attacks on Russian military concentrations, their equipment, ammunition, or logistics depots.
Since August 2022, explosions and fires have regularly been reported on the Russian-occupied Crimean Peninsula and Sevastopol.
The reported downed missile near the Kerch bridge comes shortly after Ukraine's Deputy Defense Minister Hanna Maliar made what appeared to be the clearest admission yet that Ukrainian forces had launched an attack on the bridge last October.
