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Crimea Targeted by ‘Large Number’ of Aerial Weapons

The Crimean bridge seen engulfed in a smokescreen. Baza / Telegram

A “large number” of aerial weapons targeted annexed Crimea on Wednesday, Russian-installed authorities said.

“The military is working to destroy a large number of various air targets in different areas throughout the peninsula,” Mikhail Razvozhayev, governor of the Crimean port city of Sevastopol, said on the Telegram messaging app.

He did not specify what types of weapons were used against the annexed territory or their intended targets, nor did he report any kind of damage.

During a two-hour air raid alert, Razvozhayev urged residents to take shelter due to ongoing threats of an attack.

He also said that videos shared on social media of smoke clouds engulfing the Crimean Bridge showed a military smokescreen designed to obscure missiles or drones that might be targeting the bridge.

Traffic along the bridge was temporarily halted on Wednesday but then restored after the air raid alert was lifted, according to Interfax.

On Monday, Ukraine claimed to have struck part of Russia’s air defense system in western Crimea.

Russia’s military said its air defense units had successfully shot down eight British-supplied Storm Shadow cruise missiles over the annexed peninsula.

Kyiv has increased attacks on Crimea, annexed by Russia in 2014, since it launched a counteroffensive against Russian forces this summer.

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