Russia faced a heavy bombardment today as huge explosions ripped through the occupied port of Berdiansk, and Ukraine is believed to be making the most of new missiles gifted by Britain.
The footage shows the moment the port facilities are attacked with a suspected Storm Shadow missile, Britain’s most powerful non-nuclear missile that can strike targets from a range of 150 miles.
A huge column of smoke was seen rising from a place in the port area on the Azov Sea, in the Russian-occupied Zaporizhzhia region.
Russian state media outlet RT said there were “casualties and destruction” from the attack, the exact target of which was not immediately clear.
Russia-based official Vladimir Rogov said nine people were injured. Berdiansk was first hit on Saturday in Storm Shadow missile strikes.
A huge column of smoke was seen rising from a place in the port area on the Azov Sea, in the Russian-occupied Zaporizhzhia region.
The footage shows the moment the facilities in the port are hit by a Storm Shadow suspected of being supplied by the British.
State media outlet RT said there were “casualties and destruction” from the attack. The exact target of which was not immediately clear.
Russia faced a heavy bombardment today as huge explosions ripped through the occupied port of Berdiansk.
Chaos broke out inside Russia today as well, with the Belgorod border region facing further attacks from the air.
Two women were reportedly killed in the Maslova Pristan settlement amid heavy shelling in the Shebekinsky district.
One child and another adult were reported as injured.
One report said that an explosive device was dropped on a highway from a drone.
The area is under siege by anti-Putin Russian supporters who are challenging the armed forces from bases inside Ukraine.
A video shows Free Russian Legion fighters inside Russia in the village of Novaya Tavolzhanka in the Belgorod region.
Thousands of locals have evacuated border towns and villages amid the fighting.
In Russian-occupied Mariupol, also on the Azov Sea, air defenses hit incoming Ukrainian missiles, according to Russian reports.
Previously, Russia faced drone strikes in the Kursk region, which borders Ukraine.
In a night attack on Berdiansk last week, which reports suggested may also have been carried out with Storm Shadow missiles, fire was seen raining down on the port.
Videos from a residential building showed a plume of flame believed to rise over the port area after the attack.
A Russian S-300 air defense missile shop was claimed to have been hit in the attack, but there was no immediate confirmation.
An unnamed Russian official in Zaporizhzhia verified the attack in Berdiansk, saying the city was “under fire from the kyiv regime.” Explosions were heard outside [of the city]. First responders were working on the scene.’
MailOnline could not immediately verify whether British missiles were used.
Defense Secretary Ben Wallace previously confirmed that Ukraine had used the missiles on May 18, but declined to elaborate.
He said the missiles gave the Ukrainians the ability to attack Russian command and control centers that had been moved further back in the front line to keep them out of range of the rocket artillery systems the West had supplied to Kiev.
Explosions in the Russian-occupied city of Berdiansk, in the Zaporizhzhia region of Ukraine on May 26.
A disrupted attack on Russia’s Morozovsk military airfield in the Rostov region on May 26.
Ukraine is the only country to which the UK publicly supplies these missiles.
Britain also became the first country to provide Ukraine with long-range precision missiles with the delivery.
The £2.2m missiles each will allow Ukrainian forces to penetrate deeper into Russian-controlled territory.
They were suspected to have been used earlier this month when Russian MP Viktor Vodolatsky suffered injuries after an attack on May 15.
The Storm Shadow missile was first developed in 1994, but was first used by the French Ministry of Defense before being used by Britain.
The missile weighs approximately 1,300 kilograms (2,900 pounds), with a conventional warhead weighing 450 kilograms (990 pounds).
The ‘fire and forget’ missiles are pre-programmed before a mission and accelerate up to 621 mph, hitting targets up to 350 miles away.
The missiles were first used operationally by UK forces in the 2003 invasion of Iraq, where they were tested by 617 Squadron of the Royal Air Force.
The RAF and the French Air Force have used them against Isis. Britain also used them against Syrian forces in 2018.
Last year, the United States sent Harpoon anti-ship missiles to Ukraine to bolster its offensive power.
Britain recently sent a shipment of Storm Shadow missiles to Ukraine, allowing kyiv forces to push deeper into Russian-controlled territory.
The missiles are also capable of hitting targets on the ground.
At around £1m per missile, they are significantly cheaper than Britain’s Storm Shadow missiles, but have a maximum range of 150 miles and reach speeds of up to 537mph.
Both are ‘subsonic’ missiles, traveling below the speed of sound.
Defense analyst Dr. James Bosbotinis said Storm Shadow’s range allows it to hit “high-value hardened targets” that “the adversary doesn’t want to have hit,” such as bunkers, Forces.net reports.
Some of the aftermath of the May 26 missile attacks on Krasnodar in southern Russia
Ukraine also has its HIMARS rocket systems for defense, but these have a range of only 50 miles.
Russian forces have adapted by removing their munitions from range during clashes.
The exact number of Storm Shadow missiles sent to Ukraine has not been disclosed.
Most UK stocks must be reserved in the event of any direct conflict involving British forces.
Strategic analyst Howard Wheeldon indicated that the UK could not afford to send aircraft as its current fleet is too small to defend the British Isles.
He told the Mail: “All credit to the UK government for their quick response and actions, but the sad fact is that after supplying an unquantified number of probably expired Storm Shadow missiles, the UK has little else it can give. “.
I am Rakesh Sharma, I associated with Elite News as an Editor, since 2021. I take care of all the news operations like content, budget, hiring and policy making.