Crimea serves as a strategic hub for Russia’s military operations against Ukraine, hosting airbases, ammunition depots, communication centers, radar stations, and air defense systems. Ukrainian drone strikes aim to weaken Russia’s military presence and reduce the threat of missile attacks.
Sevastopol’s Russian-installed governor, Mikhail Razvozhayev, claimed that Russian air defenses intercepted four drones over the Black Sea at a significant distance from the shore. However, reports on social media indicated explosions in Sevastopol, Saky, Kerch, and near Belbek airfield. The Russian Telegram channel VChK-OGPU described it as the largest drone attack on Crimea in recent months.
The strike came a day before Ukraine’s Day of Resistance to the Occupation of Crimea and Sevastopol, which commemorates the 2014 protest in Simferopol against Russia’s annexation. Two days later, on 27 February 2014, Russian special forces seized key government buildings in the city, cementing Moscow’s control over the peninsula.
Since the start of the full-scale invasion, the Crimean Bridge has been repeatedly targeted. A major explosion on 8 October 2022 severely damaged the structure, briefly halting traffic.
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