Ukraine Hits Key Kursk Oblast Bridge In Back-To-Back Strikes

Ukraine continues to target Russian logistics routes and depots in order to thwart any attempts to launch a counterattack in the Kursk region. JL

Chris Panella reports in Business Insider:

Ukraine launched back-to-back strikes on a bridge in Russia's Kursk region. The first attack on the bridge was a  HIMARS strike. The second involved the US-made Joint Direct Attack Munition - Extended Range (JDAM-ER). The damaged section of the bridge showed notable damage to the structure. Ukraine is targeting these bridges to disrupt Russian logistics and supply lines to the area as Moscow continues to redirect its forces to Kursk to counter Kyiv's invasion.

Video footage appearing to show back-to-back strikes on a bridge in Russia's Kursk region has surfaced online.

The first attack on the bridge was a suspected HIMARS, or High Mobility Rocket Artillery System, strike. The second, per open-source analysis and local reporting, may have involved the US-made Joint Direct Attack Munition - Extended Range (JDAM-ER).

The footage of the first attack on the Seym River Bridge, near the village of Karyzh in Kursk, was published by the Khorne Group, a Ukrainian drone unit with the 116th Mechanized Brigade, on Telegram on Sunday.

It was then shared by open-source intelligence accounts on social media.

 

In the video, the Russian bridge takes multiple successive strikes. The munitions look to scatter across the target area, hitting both the bridge and the water.

The footage then zooms in on the damaged section of the bridge, showing notable damage to the structure.

The next day, footage appeared on Telegram and then later on other social media that seemed to show a follow-up attack with a different weapon.

Open-source intelligence accounts identified the weapons used in this attack as US-supplied JDAM-ERs. These weapons use kits to turn unguided bombs into precision-strike options. These are air-launched weapons that have been used previously to strike bridges inside Russia.

 

The video appears to show greater damage to the bridge, which seems to have a hole in it. However, it is still standing.

Business Insider was unable to independently verify the details of the strike footage, which online OSINT accounts geolocated to the Karyzh area in Kursk, but this is not the first time Ukraine has struck Russian bridges in Kursk.

Video footage from late last month shared by Ukraine's air force, showed a Soviet-era MiG-29 aircraft dropping US-made GBU-62 JDAM-ER bombs on Kursk bridges.

The bombs in some respects are similar to Russia's glide bombs, which it's previously used to devastate Ukrainian positions. These weapons were especially notable for their use in Russia's offensive of Avdiivka, where they helped Russia briefly achieve air superiority.

Ukraine appears to be targeting these bridges in an effort to disrupt Russian logistics and supply lines to the area as Moscow continues to redirect its forces to Kursk to counter Kyiv's invasion.