Ukrainian villages evacuated after explosions at Russian military base

A series of sabotage missions deep into Russian-held territory have been reported as a result of fires and explosions at military targets in Russia and Russian-occupied parts of Ukraine.

Two Russian villages were evacuated after a blaze at a munitions depot near the Ukrainian border in Belgorod province. A ammunition depot near the village of Timonovo was less than 50 km from the border, regional governor Vyacheslav Gladkov said in a statement that no casualties were reported.

At least four explosions were reported near the major Belbek airbase, north of Sevastopol in the occupied Crimean peninsula. Mikhail Razvozhayev, the pro-Russian governor of Sevastopol, said there was no damage. Air defences were also activated near Kerch, the city at the Crimean end of a bridge to mainland Russia, which is a strategically vital supply route that many in Ukraine would like to see destroyed. Local media said a Ukrainian drone was shot down.

The Ukrainian defence ministry released a tongue-in- cheek tweet after it was reported that a number of fires in Timonovo spread, with the brief message smoking kills! The overnight incidents on Thursday came after explosions at a major airbase and a munitions depot in Crimea, and officials joked that explosions and fires at military targets in occupied Crimea were caused by careless smokers. After the attacks, many Russians raced to leave the peninsula, with a record 38,000 cars crossing on Tuesday.

Ukraine's president, Volodymyr Zelenskiy, said on Wednesday that the panicked Russians have realized that Crimea is not a place for them and that more attacks could lie ahead.

He urged Ukrainians to stay away from enemy command posts and logistics bases. He said not to approach the military objects of the Russian army.

Crimea is a key hub for the Russian invasion, and the UK Ministry of Defence said Russia's military leaders are likely to be worried about the surge of setbacks there, even if Moscow has dismissed them as local sabotage Six alleged Islamist extremists were detained on Wednesday, according to Crimea's Moscow-appointed head Sergey Aksyonov. It was not clear what relation if any of the arrested were involved in the recent attacks.