Russian Forces Strike Kyiv’s North Bridge, Vitali Klitschko Says Two Injured

Bridges hit as terror tactic

Russian forces attacked Kyiv’s North Bridge over the Dnipro on Sunday, injuring two people and damaging the roadway, according to Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko. President Volodymyr Zelensky said, “The Russians have again struck the North bridge of Kiev with a drone,” as the BBC described the strike as the latest in four consecutive days of Russian drone attacks on major Kyiv bridges. The El Mundo account said Russia’s bridge campaign aims to split the city in two by spreading terror, and it described the South Bridge, Pivdennyi, as having been hit five times between Thursday and Friday.

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The BBC reported that repair teams were working to fix the damage and that officials were planning temporary pontoon bridges, ferry services and even a tunnel under the river to keep Kyiv connected. El Mundo added that with at least two of Kyiv’s eight bridges unusable, Mayor Vitali Klitschko said the campaign is “splitting Kiev in two.”

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Merz visit and competing claims

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz arrived in Kyiv for a surprise visit as Russian strikes intensified, and the BBC said Merz met Zelensky and wrote, “You can rely on us.” The El Mundo account said the drones now arrive in smaller numbers throughout the day and are harder to shoot down, while it described Russia’s strategy as attacking Kiev’s bridges over the Dnipro for four consecutive days. The Russian Defense Ministry pledged to intensify strikes on Kyiv and other major Ukrainian cities, and CNBC said the ministry confirmed the attack on the Northern Bridge and described it as supporting “the transfer of troops and the logistics of military cargo.”

Zelensky told Reuters that Ukraine would increase targeted strikes on Russian oil refineries in retaliation to a new policy of airstrikes designed to force people to abandon Kyiv and other cities, and CNBC quoted the Russian Defense Ministry response that Zelenskyy “bears full personal and political responsibility.” Al Jazeera Net reported that Zelensky said the bridges are being bombed and asked whether anyone really thinks Ukraine will not respond, while it also described four partial ceasefire proposals covering energy and the Black Sea.

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Winter stakes and diplomacy

The BBC said Ukraine’s Air Force reported that overnight Russia launched 135 drones, including 52 jet-powered ones, and it said Ukraine shot down 125 projectiles as emergency services responded across Kyiv and beyond.

El Mundo warned that with winter approaching, Russia’s advantage could be deadly for the civilian population of Ukraine, and it described Ukraine as using robotic machine-gun turrets enabled by Artificial Intelligence to shoot down the Shahed-5.

The El Mundo account said the Institute for the Study of War (ISW) stated that “Russian developers are actively expanding production, improving speed and maneuverability, and diversifying launch platforms in an effort to deploy these armaments more broadly in 2027.”

Al Jazeera Net said Zelensky told Reuters that the two U.S. peace envoys were working to arrange a trilateral meeting at the technical level by the end of October, and it said Kyiv was open to hosting it in the United Arab Emirates or another country proposed by the American side.

Deccan Chronicle reported that External affairs minister S. Jaishankar said India was discussing Black Sea shipping safety, grain and energy exports and “non-attack possibilities” with Russia and Ukraine, and it quoted Jaishankar saying, “We have conversations with both Russia and Ukraine in this regard.”

Reporting for this sectionBBCEl Mundo