- Ukrainian forces ‘leaving trail of destruction’ in Kursk
The Russian authorities on Friday confirmed that two key bridges were destroyed in country’s Kursk region on the Seym River.
According to officials in Moscow, the Ukrainian Military may have used missiles supplied by the United States in destroying the bridge.
Spokeswoman for the Russian Foreign Ministry, Maria Zakharova said on the Telegram messaging app:
Reports indicated that for the first time, the Kursk region was hit by Western-made rocket launchers, probably American HIMARS (M142 High Mobility Artillery Rocket System).
As a result of the attack on the bridge over the Seym River in the Glushkovo district, it was completely destroyed, and volunteers who were assisting the evacuated civilian population were killed.
The US, which has said it cannot allow Russian president Vladimir Putin to win the war he launched in February 2022, so far deems the surprise incursion a protective move that justifies the use of US weaponry, officials in Washington said
Also, reporters from the Associated Press (AP) on the ground said Ukrainian forces are ‘leaving trail of destruction’ in Kursk, adding that on a trip through Kursk organised by the Ukrainian government, they witnessed a “trail of destruction”.
The report said; “A trail of destruction lies in the path that Ukrainian forces carved on their risky incursion into Russia, blasting through the border and eventually into the town of Sudzha.
“Artillery fire has blown chunks out of a statue of Soviet founder Vladimir Lenin that stands in a central square of the Russian town, which Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Thursday was fully under his troops’ control.
“The windows of an administrative building are blasted out, and its bright yellow facade is scorched and pockmarked with bullet holes.
“Ukrainian forces have overrun one Russian settlement after another in the surprise operation that Kyiv hopes will change the dynamic of the two-and-a-half-year-old conflict.
“Russia’s military has so far struggled to mount an effective response to the attack on its Kursk region, the largest on the country since World War II. Sudzha, which is 10 kilometers (6 miles) from the border, is the biggest town to fall to Ukraine’s troops since the incursion began August 6, 2024.
“Evidence of Ukraine’s lightning march lines the roads to the town. On grass littered with debris lies a sign blasted with bullets that has arrows in two directions: Ukraine to the left and Russia to right. A burned-out tank stands by the side of a road.”
Meanwhile, Russia’s Defence Ministry has accused Ukraine of planning to attack the Kursk nuclear power plant and blame such a “provocation” on Moscow, Reuters has reported, citing Interfax news agency.
The Ministry said that Russia would respond harshly in the event of such an attack, which it said would contaminate a large surrounding area.
The Kursk nuclear power plant remains under Russia’s control.
