Two people from Russia’s Belgorod region, a mother and father, were killed in the “emergency” on the Crimean bridge, and their daughter was injured, the region’s governor has said on Telegram.
“This morning, we all started with information about the emergency that happened on the Crimean bridge. We all saw a video on the internet of a damaged car with Belgorod number plates,” Vyacheslav Gladkov wrote.
“The girl was injured, moderately injured … The hardest thing is that her parents died, dad and mom.”
The blasts on the 12-mile Kerch bridge, a major supply artery for Russian troops fighting in Ukraine, left twisted metal barriers, debris and a damaged car on the bridge.
It is the second major incident on the bridge in the past year. In October 2022, the bridge was partially closed following an explosion. It was fully reopened in February.
Moscow blames Ukraine for the attack, while in Kyiv, they are talking about Russia’s possible provocation.
In other news, Russia has withdrawn from a deal that exports millions of tons of grain worldwide, in a move that could potentially jeopardize world food supplies.
The UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres has said that he “deeply regrets” Russia’s decision to exit the Black Sea grain deal.
Speaking from UN offices in New York, he said: “Today’s decision by the Russian Federation will strike a blow to people in need everywhere.
“Hundreds of millions of people face hunger and consumers are confronting a global cost-of-living crisis. They will pay the price.”
He said that the pausing of the deal means a related pact between Moscow and the UN, to help facilitate Russia’s fertilizer and grain exports was also terminated. “Our main focus will be advancing global food security and global food price stability,” he said.
President Volodymyr Zelensky said Monday that Ukraine is prepared to continue grain exports after Russia exited a landmark deal brokered with Turkey and the UN to unblock deliveries from the major producer.
“Even without the Russian Federation, everything must be done so that we can use this Black Sea corridor. We are not afraid. We have been approached by companies that own ships. They said that they are ready to continue shipments,” Zelensky said in comments distributed on social media by his spokesman Sergiy Nykyforov.