Crimea Hit by Multiple Explosions as Russia Scrambles Air Defenses

A series of explosions have hit Crimea, according to reports in what Russia has described as a "terrorist" attack carried out by Ukraine.

Pro-Ukrainian Eastern European news outlet Nexta posted on Telegram that there were "about 10 explosions" in Sevastopol on Thursday afternoon.

The local Telegram Channel Crimean Wind said that one Ukrainian missile had been shot down while a second hit a military unit in Yukharina Balka where an airfield is located and that ambulances and fire fighters were at the scene.

Ukrainian armed forces posted on Telegram that it had struck a Russian military command near the port city. Explosions can be heard in a video shared on social media.

Meanwhile, images showed what appeared to be the aftermath of a strike with smoke billowing into the air with one X user posting that a "radar installation on the outskirts of Yevpatoriya has been hit."

The Russian Ministry of Defense said in a statement that 10 Ukrainian missiles had been destroyed over the occupied peninsula following "an attempt by the Kyiv regime to carry out a terrorist attack using aircraft guided missiles."

Sevastopol Governor Mikhail Razvozhayev wrote on social media that missile fragments had hit several areas in the port city and urged residents to stay in place or in emergency shelters. Air raid sirens were heard in the city, although he later posted that the threat was all clear.

Ukrainian internal affairs adviser Anton Gerashchenko posted on X a video of the strikes, noting that "unofficial sources report that a military unit in Saky district of Crimea was hit by the attack."

Newsweek has reached out to the Russian Defense Ministry for comment.

Among Kyiv's war aims is to recapture Crimea, and Ukrainian President Volodymr Zelensky told The Economist that the occupied peninsula, and the battle for the Black Sea where Ukraine have hit Russian targets will be the epicenter of the war.

"The goal is to save and have more successful steps in the Black Sea, to continue success on Crimea in the south and to defend the east, to save Kharkiv," he said while calling for more Western weapons to help his fight.

Over the last few days, Russia has bombarded cities in Ukraine with missiles and drones. It follows a pledge by Russian President Vladimir Putin for revenge following a strike on the Russian border city of Belgorod that killed two dozen, injured more than 100 that Moscow has blamed on Kyiv.

Update 1/4/24, 12:30 p.m. ET: This story was updated with additional information.