Summary

  • President Vladimir Putin has blamed Ukraine for a "senseless" and "cruel" attack on the Crimea bridge, which links the occupied peninsula to Russia

  • He vows to respond to what he calls a "terrorist" act early on Monday morning, in which two people were killed

  • Russia earlier claimed the attack involved the "direct participation" of American and British intelligence and politicians

  • Kyiv has not officially said it was responsible but a source in Ukraine's security service tells BBC Russian it was behind the attack

  • Meanwhile, the UN chief says Russia's decision to exit a grain deal with Ukraine will "strike a blow to people in need everywhere"

  • Antonio Guterres says he "deeply regrets" Russia's withdrawal from the Black Sea grain export deal, which expires tonight

  • Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky says Kyiv is prepared to continue the deal even without Russia's participation

Live Reporting

Edited by Marita Moloney

  1. Ukraine armed forces behind attack, source tells BBC
    Breaking

    A source in the Security Service of Ukraine tells BBC Russian the attack was "a special operation of the naval forces of the armed forces of Ukraine and the Security Service of Ukraine".

    “The bridge was attacked with surface drones. It was difficult to reach the bridge, but in the end it was possible," the source says.

    Separately, sources tell the Ukrainian site censor.net that Ukraine's security service carried out the attack.

  2. Russian official blames Ukraine's 'terrorist regime' for attack
    Breaking

    The Russian-installed head of the Crimean parliament has blamed the attack on the "terrorist regime in Kyiv".

    According to state-backed Russian media, Vladimir Konstantinov said Ukraine had committed a "new crime" by targeting what he called a "civilian" facility.

    The BBC cannot verify Konstantinov's claims - as yet it's not known what caused the damage to the bridge.

  3. What do we know so far?

    A view shows the Crimean bridge connecting the Russian mainland with the peninsula across the Kerch Strait, Crimea, July 17, 2023.Reuters

    The Kerch bridge connects the occupied Crimean peninsula with mainland Russia

    Here’s what we know so far about this morning’s incident on the Kerch bridge, which connects the occupied Crimean peninsula with mainland Russia.

    • Russian officials say two people have died after what the Russian-installed head of Crimea's parliament has called an attack by Ukraine on the Kerch bridge
    • Traffic on the bridge was stopped due to the “emergency” on the Russian side of the bridge, Russian officials have said
    • Russia’s transport ministry said the explosion did not damage the bridge’s support infrastructure and that only the road surface has been affected
    • BBC Russian reports that the ferry crossing that runs parallel to the bridge has been closed
    • The bridge was opened by Russian President Vladimir Putin in 2018, but in October last year was partially closed following a major explosion, the cause of which remains unclear - but which Putin blamed on Ukraine

  4. Welcome to our live coverage

    Jack Burgess
    BBC News Live reporter

    Good morning and welcome to our live page on the war in Ukraine.

    The Russian-installed head of Crimea's parliament has accused Ukraine of making a new attack on the bridge linking the occupied Crimean peninsula to Russia.

    Unconfirmed reports said explosions were heard early on Monday.

    We’ll bring you the latest on this and we're also expecting updates later today on Ukraine’s looming grain deal deadline.

    The deal which allows Ukraine to safely export its grain via the Black Sea without fear of Russian attack expires today, and Moscow has signalled that it may not renew the arrangement.

    I'm here with my colleagues Oliver Slow and Ali Abbas Ahmadi, so stick with us as we bring you updates throughout the day.