FACT CHECK: Did Ukraine Attack The Crimean Bridge?

A video shared on Facebook claims Ukrainian forces attacked the Crimean Bridge. 

Verdict: False

There is no evidence to suggest Ukrainian forces have attacked or damaged the Crimean Bridge.

Fact Check: 

A key bridge in the Kherson region of Ukraine was “badly damaged” this week by Ukrainian shelling, according to Reuters. The bridge serves as one of only two routes for Russian forces in the region to be resupplied, ABC News reported.

Now, a Facebook video, viewed over 154,000 times, claims the Ukrainians have attacked another important bridge. “BIG EXPLOSION 5 Minutes Ago! Ukraine Attacks the Crimean bridge – A Terrible Explosion will kill Russia!” reads the video’s caption. The Crimean Bridge, also known as the Kerch Strait Bridge, connects Russia to Crimea.

“Days after Russians were spotted preparing the Kerch Strait bridge, which connects mainland Russia to Crimea, for missile attacks, statements made by U.S. defense officials signaled that the prized piece of Russian infrastructure is a fair target in their minds,” an automated voice states in the video. The video continues to describe the ongoing war efforts in Ukraine.

The video’s caption is baseless. Neither the Ukrainian Ministry of Defense nor the U.S. Department of Defense has issued any statement about the Russian bridge being hit or destroyed by a Ukrainian attack. There are likewise no credible news reports about the bridge being attacked or destroyed.  (RELATED: Did Ukraine Defeat The Russians In Kherson?)

The post’s video does not show any footage or photos of the alleged attack. Rather, it shows a slideshow of unrelated pictures of warships and missiles. It provides no additional evidence to support the claim made in the post’s caption. 

While there is no evidence the bridge in Crimea was attacked, Russian forces have reportedly been preparing for a potential missile attack on the bridge by deploying decoy barges and using smoke to obscure it, according to Forbes. Ukrainian general Dmitry Marchenko said in June that the bridge is “target number one for the Ukrainian Armed Forces.”

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