WASHINGTON - A senior Biden administration official says U.S. spy satellites detected an explosion at the Kakhovka dam just before it collapsed, but American analysts still do not know who caused the dam's destruction or how exactly it happened.
The official said that satellites equipped with infrared sensors detected a heat signature consistent with a major explosion just before the dam collapsed, releasing massive floodwaters downstream.
American intelligence analysts suspect Russia was behind the dam's destruction, the senior administration official said, speaking under condition of anonymity to discuss operational details. But, he said, U.S. spy agencies have no solid evidence about who is responsible.
Engineering and munitions experts have said a deliberate explosion inside the Kakhovka dam, controlled by Russia, most likely caused its collapse on Tuesday. The authors added: structural failure or an attack from outside the dam were possible but less plausible explanations.