Ukraine destroys two bridges in Belgorod region with drones

Ukrainian forces destroyed two bridges inside Russia's Belgorod region on Aug. 23 by using small, low-cost drones to detonate caches of mines and ammunition hidden beneath the crossings, a representative of Ukraine's 58th Separate Motorized Infantry Brigade said. The brigade said the bridges, located near the border with Ukraine's Kharkiv region, were being used by Russian forces as resupply routes.

A brigade representative said soldiers became suspicious after observing unusual activity near one of the bridges and sent a first-person-view drone equipped with fiber-optic cabling to investigate because standard reconnaissance drones lost signal under the structure. Video released by the unit shows the drone approaching a covered pile of antitank mines and other munitions tucked under the bridge. "We saw the mines, and we struck," the representative said. After reviewing the footage, the brigade reported it inspected a second nearby bridge, found it similarly mined and struck it as well. The recording of the first strike cuts off when the drone crashes into the explosives, and separate drone footage shows a blast that engulfed the bridge deck in flames and smoke.