Russia urges diplomats and foreigners to leave Kiev, announces massive attacks

Russia on Saturday urged diplomats and foreign citizens to leave Kiev and warned that the Ukrainian capital would be the target of new "massive" airstrikes hours after a bombing struck another major bridge in the city.

Russian attacks struck the North Bridge in Kiev on Saturday, two days after another key road link in the southern part of the Ukrainian capital was bombed, Mayor Vitali Klitschko announced.

In a statement, the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs urged "foreign citizens and diplomats in Kiev to leave the city."

It added that its forces will continue to carry out "massive retaliatory strikes" against "military targets in Kiev and other Ukrainian cities."

"The responsibility for any negative consequences will lie entirely with those who ignore this warning," the Russian Foreign Ministry added.

Russia issued a similar call in May

Russia issued a similar call in May, but Western foreign ministries did not evacuate their personnel.

In recent weeks, the Ukrainian capital has been targeted by nearly daily waves of drones, including jet-powered models that are harder to intercept, as Ukraine faces a shortage of air defense systems.

The second major bridge in Kiev to be bombed in recent days

The mayor of Kiev announced on Telegram that the North Bridge, one of the eight structures spanning the Dnieper River, was hit by Russian shelling on Saturday morning.

Moments earlier, authorities had issued a drone alert for the city. It is the second major bridge in Kiev to be bombed in recent days.

On Thursday and Friday, the South Bridge had been struck by Russian drones, causing it to be closed to traffic and leading to massive traffic jams.

These are the first major attacks on key overpasses in Kiev since the start of the Russian invasion in 2022.

Ukraine had feared such attacks, so the Kiev city government restricted traffic on Friday on two other major bridges, the Paton and the Metro, although no bombings were reported at those locations.

AFP journalists observed temporary restrictions on a fourth bridge, the Darnytskyi.