'Massive' drone attack on Black Sea Fleet - Russia
Hugo Bachega, Kyiv & James Gregory, London | 11 hours agoUkraine has carried out a "massive" drone attack on the Black Sea Fleet in the Crimean port city of Sevastopol, damaging one warship, Russia says.
Nine drones were used, a top official said. Ukraine has not commented.
Without providing evidence, Russia accused British troops of being involved in Saturday's attack - and in blowing up gas pipelines last month.
In its response, the UK Ministry of Defence (MoD) said Russia was "peddling false claims of an epic scale".
Russia said the ships targeted in Saturday's attack were involved in the internationally-brokered deal to allow grain exports from Ukrainian ports and hours later announced that it was suspending its participation in it.
The attack comes as Ukrainian troops successfully retake territory occupied by Russian troops since they launched their invasion on 24 February.
Russia has replied by launching large-scale attacks on Ukrainian infrastructure, particularly on the country's energy grid.
Crimea was annexed by Russia from Ukraine in 2014 and is extremely symbolic for Russian President Vladimir Putin.
In recent weeks, several attacks have hit the peninsula, where the Russian army has built up a large presence.
Sevastopol is the largest city in the region and home to Russia's Black Sea fleet.
Mikhail Razvozhaev, the Russian-installed governor of the city, said Russia's navy had repelled the latest attack - the "most massive" on the city since February.
He said that all unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV) had been shot down and no "civilian infrastructure" had been damaged.
At least one vessel sustained minor damage, the Russian ministry of defence said. . .
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-63437212