Ukraine's commandos have destroyed a railway bridge feeding Russian forces in occupied Crimea, the Special Operations Forces (SSO) said. The SSO's drones wrecked the crossing over two nights and struck the repair equipment that Russia rushed in to save it. With the bridge gone, rail traffic across the peninsula has stalled.
Crimea has two rail connections: a northern bridge to mainland Ukraine — damaged earlier this month, and the Kerch Strait Bridge's railway part. The bridge destroyed today is located on the only rail line running from Russia through occupied Kerch. Basically, the railways in the Crimean peninsula have been effectively cut from Russia, with only Kerch city and its nearby areas within the reach so far.
"It no longer exists"
SSO drones destroyed the railway bridge over the North Crimean Canal near Rozdolne, the force announced. Its middle-strike units worked with fighters from the SSO Resistance Movement on the ground.
"The railway bridge over the North Crimean Canal in Crimea no longer exists," SSO wrote, adding, "The first one's down."
SSO drones tore up the rail bed overnight on 22 June and collapsed one span. Resistance fighters then reported repair equipment arriving at the site. SSO launched a second phase overnight on 23 June. The drones hit the repair machinery and struck the bridge's remains again.
A strategic supply artery
The bridge sat on the Dzhankoi–Kerch railway line. It moved cargo two ways, SSO said. Trains ran from Russia through Crimea to forces on the southern front. They also ran within the peninsula to sustain Russian military infrastructure.
Trains grind to a halt
Passenger trains across the peninsula have stopped, Suspilne reported. Kerch is now the only start and end point for rail links to Russia. Even those trains run late. After the Kerch Bridge closed overnight, services to Moscow and St. Petersburg were delayed up to 4.5 hours, the Russian carrier Grand Service Express said. Other Russian cities saw delays of 1.5 to 2 hours, RFE/RL reported, citing the carrier, which said rail traffic on the bridge reopened by morning.
The fuel blockade tightens: Kerch struck again, power knocked out across occupied Crimea
Part of a wider assault
The strikes came amid a broader Ukrainian attack on Crimea overnight on 23 June. Drones set a Kerch power plant ablaze and blacked out much of the peninsula. The Unmanned Systems Forces hit 60 Russian targets on occupied territory, including oil tanks and a power substation.
Bridges falling one by one
SSO first disabled the same bridge overnight on 18 June. That raid was part of strikes on rail crossings near Rozdolne and Vladyslavivka. Ukraine has battered the bridges linking Crimea to mainland Ukraine for weeks. With the northern rail links already broken, the peninsula's trains now lean on Kerch alone.
