A Russian air attack damaged a major bridge over the Dnipro River in Kyiv on Saturday, marking the second key bridge in the Ukrainian capital to come under attack in recent days, Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko said.
The Northern Bridge, which connects the eastern and western parts of Kyiv, was hit during the attack. Emergency services were sent to the site after the strike damaged sections of the road surface and overhead trolleybus cables.
Traffic across the bridge from the eastern bank toward the western side was suspended following the attack. No casualties were reported from the bridge strike, according to officials cited by Reuters.
Southern Bridge Also Hit
The attack on the Northern Bridge came after repeated Russian drone strikes on Kyiv’s Southern Bridge over the previous two days.
Those attacks had already disrupted traffic across the Southern Bridge and temporarily affected other crossings over the Dnipro, creating major congestion in the capital.
Kyiv relies heavily on its bridges because a large share of the city’s population lives on the eastern side of the river while many government institutions, businesses and workplaces are located on the western bank.
Growing Pressure on Kyiv’s Infrastructure
The latest strikes are part of a broader escalation in Russian attacks on infrastructure in and around Kyiv.
Ukrainian officials have warned about increasing pressure on critical infrastructure, including transport networks and energy facilities, as the country prepares for another difficult winter.
The recent attacks on bridges have also created additional problems for residents trying to travel between the two sides of the capital. Local authorities have been working to manage traffic and restore movement where possible.
The Northern Bridge attack also comes amid renewed Russian air and drone attacks across Ukraine. Other parts of the country have reported damage and casualties in separate strikes in recent days.
Moscow’s Position
Russia has previously denied systematically targeting civilians in its air campaign against Ukraine and has said that its strikes are directed at military or strategically important targets.
Ukrainian authorities, meanwhile, have repeatedly accused Russia of targeting critical infrastructure and civilian areas.
The circumstances and full extent of the damage to Kyiv’s Northern Bridge are still being assessed.
Source attribution: Reuters, Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko and other Ukrainian and international reporting.
