Will Vernon
Reporting from eastern Ukraine

Many Ukrainians greeted the news of the incident on the Crimean bridge with glee.

Writing on social media, they are hopeful that Russian logistics will be interrupted as a result – the bridge has been a major supply route for Russian armour and supplies.

The spokesman for Ukraine's eastern group of forces, Serhiy Cherevaty, said soldiers on the frontlines "reacted well" to the events on the bridge with “a healthy dose of schadenfreude".

"They have faith in their commanders and they want to strike the enemy wherever possible – to exact retribution for our people who have been killed, for our destroyed cities," he told the BBC.

Video material verified by our BBC Verify team reveals some of the damage to the Kerch bridge after this morning's attack.

In case you're just joining us, here's a recap of the day's events so far:

• Russian officials have said this morning there was an "emergency situation" at the Kerch bridge connecting Russia to the Crimean peninsula. According to local news, two explosions happened overnight, but it is still unclear what exactly happened
• Two people - the parents of a young girl - have died in the incident, the Russian governor of Belgorod region has said

• Russian officials are blaming Ukrainian special forces for a "terrorist attack" on the bridge. Kyiv has neither confirmed nor denied its involvement
• Videos and images show damage to the road, but it is unclear if the support structure holding up the bridge has also been impacted
• Traffic has been stopped across the bridge but the parallel rail bridge has reopened

• Today is also the day in which a deal that has allowed grain to leave Ukrainian ports since it was brokered by the UN last year is set to expire

We've been hearing a bit more reaction from from the Ukrainian side.

A spokesperson from Ukraine's security service (SBU) has told the AFP news agency they are closely following the aftermath of the attack.

In a written comment to the AFP, Artem Dekhtiarenko has said "we are watching with interest as one of the symbols of Putin's regime once again failed to withstand the military load".

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky's aide Mykhailo Podolyak appears to have made a thinly-veiled reference to the Kerch bridge on social media, external.

"Any illegal structures used to deliver Russian instruments of mass murder are necessarily short-lived - regardless of the reasons for the destruction," he posted on Twitter.

Bridge attacks coincide with Ukrainian advancespublished at 09:55 British Summer Time 17 July 2023

09:55 BST 17 July 2023

Paul Adams
Diplomatic correspondent

Last October’s devastating explosion on the bridge came as Ukraine was pressuring Russian forces to abandon the city of Kherson.

Now Kyiv wants to make life as difficult as possible for Russian forces occupying areas south of the Dnipro River.

Logistics hubs across the south have been repeatedly hit using long range weapons supplied by Ukraine’s western backers.

If, as seems likely, Kyiv was behind this latest attack on the Kerch Bridge, it should be seen in the context of Ukraine’s wider effort to liberate areas of the south occupied during last year’s full-scale Russian invasion.

Beyond that, Moscow knows that Kyiv would dearly love to take back the Crimean peninsula, invaded and annexed by Russia in 2014.

For Ukrainians, the Kerch bridge, inaugurated by Russia's President Vladimir Putin in 2018 amid great fanfare, is a hated symbol of Russian occupation.

Last October’s explosion, which briefly crippled its road and rail lines, was greeted with euphoria across Ukraine.

We've just received this video, taken on Monday morning, via the Reuters news agency.

Kerch bridge key target for Ukrainepublished at 09:25 British Summer Time 17 July 2023

09:25 BST 17 July 2023

Paul Adams
Diplomatic correspondent

Ukrainian officials are maintaining their customary ambiguity about the latest attack on the Kerch bridge, but its location and strategic significance mean it was always likely to come under renewed assault.

With Kyiv’s counter-offensive aiming to deal a decisive blow to Russian forces occupying southern Ukraine, the Kerch bridge is a key target.

There aren’t many ways for Moscow to reinforce its troops in Crimea and the southern Kherson region.

The Kerch bridge is one of the most important.

If the bridge is out of action, even for a short time, this will complicate Russia’s logistical challenges - a key aspect of the early phase of Ukraine’s counter-offensive.

Image source, Reuters

We've just received our first verified image of the damaged Kerch Bridge, which links occupied Crimea to mainland Russia.

The photo appears to show a section of the bridge split and sloping to one side.

Ukraine hints at involvement in Crimea bridge attackpublished at 09:05 British Summer Time 17 July 2023

09:05 BST 17 July 2023

Abdujalil Abdurasulov
Reporting from Kyiv

Ukrainian security services have issued an official statement regarding the Kerch bridge attack.

They haven’t openly admitted it was their agency who was behind the incident, something BBC’s sources stated earlier.

But the statement hints at Kyiv’s role in it - saying “all details regarding the explosion will be announced after the victory”.

It is usual practice for the Ukrainian government not to openly admit their involvement in such attacks.

They often provide vague statements suggesting that Ukrainian forces could have been behind them.

Only this month, for example, did one Ukrainian defence official admit responsibility on the same Crimean Kerch Bridge which was attacked last October.

Repeating accusations that Ukraine is behind the bridge attack, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova has claimed US and British intelligence services provided assistance to Kyiv.

No evidence was provided for these claims and the BBC cannot verify them.

Zakharova described Ukraine's government as having "all the hallmarks of an international organised crime group".

"Decisions are made by Ukrainian officials and the military with the direct participation of American and British intelligence agencies and politicians.

"The US and Britain are in charge of a terrorist state structure."

Meanwhile, Ukraine's counteroffensive against Russian forces continues to make headway, according to Kyiv.

Ukraine's forces have retaken 18 square km (seven square miles) in the east and south of the country over the past week in their counteroffensive against Russian troops, Ukraine’s deputy defence minister Hanna Maliar said on messaging app Telegram.

The recent gains take the total area of reclaimed land to 210 square km since the counter offensive began - that's around 81 square miles.

Steve Rosenberg
BBC Russia editor

Russia’s Investigative Committee called this a “terrorist attack” and accused Ukrainian special forces of carrying it out.

It said one of the sections of the bridge had been damaged and two people killed. Russia’s National Anti-Terrorist Committee claimed the attack had been carried out with two Ukrainian naval drones.

The Kerch bridge links the Russian mainland to Crimea, the Ukrainian peninsula annexed by Russia in 2014.

The Crimean bridge attack was carried out using unmanned drones on the water's surface, Russia's anti-terrorist committee has said.

The committee has also claimed the incident was organised by Ukrainian "special services" and confirmed a criminal investigation has been launched into the attack.

What do we know so far?published at 08:22 British Summer Time 17 July 2023

08:22 BST 17 July 2023

Verified footage shows damage to the road. But it’s unclear from the video if the support structure that holds up the bridge itself is also damaged.

There are conflicting reports circulating on Telegram - a social media platform popular in Russia - about what happened.

This includes strikes and drone attacks. According to local news, two explosions happened overnight.

However, we must stress that BBC Verify has not yet seen any evidence that supports the speculation.

We will continue to look for footage and monitor social media for further clues about what happened.

The Crimean peninsula is located on the northern coast of the Black Sea and is connected to Ukraine through a narrow isthmus.

It has huge strategic importance and has exchanged hands several times over the centuries.

Most recently, it was annexed by Russian forces in 2014, soon after Kyiv’s pro-Russian president Viktor Yanukovych was deposed following mass protests in Ukraine.

Crimea’s warm water port at Sevastopol is strategically important to Russia, as its other ports freeze over winter. Sevastopol is a key port for maritime routes between the Black Sea and the Sea of Marmara in Turkey, and by extension the Atlantic Ocean and the Mediterranean Sea.

Crucially, it also gives Moscow a platform to project its air and naval might further across Europe.

So far Russian officials have provided few details of what happenedpublished at 08:08 British Summer Time 17 July 2023

08:08 BST 17 July 2023

Steve Rosenberg
Russia editor, reporting from Moscow

They speak of an “emergency” situation.

Russian social media is full of reports of an early morning attack on the bridge which links the Russian mainland to Crimea.

Local media have shared video that appears to show a section of the road bridge split and sloping. Two people were killed - that’s according to the governor of Russia’s Belgorod region.

Traffic has been stopped along the road bridge and people are being advised to seek alternative routes to and from Crimea through what Russia calls its “new regions” - the Ukrainian territories Russia occupied last year and now claims as its own.

The parallel rail bridge has reportedly been reopened.

Last October the Kerch bridge was damaged by an explosion which the Kremlin blamed on Ukrainian security forces.

The two people killed in the explosion were a mother and father from Russia's Belgorod region, the region's governor Vyacheslav Gladkov has said on the messaging app Telegram.

Their daughter was also “moderately injured”, Gladkov said, and added that "the hardest thing is that her parents died".

Sergey Aksyonov, the head of the Russian administration in Crimea, has provided an update, saying that ferry and train services are expected to resume at 09:00 local time (07:00 BST).

He said officials are continuing to investigate the causes of the incident, and urged people to only rely on “trusted sources of information”.