Russia contains fire on Moskva warship as Ukraine claims missile strike
Global News
Ukraine's southern military command said on Thursday that it hit the Moskva with a Neptune anti-ship cruise missile, a claim Russia has rejected.
Russia’s defence ministry said on Thursday that sailors had contained a fire on board the Moskva missile cruiser, the flagship of Russia’s Black Sea fleet, and that measures were being taken to tow it back to port.
The ministry, which said the blaze broke out after ammunition blew up on board, said the cruiser’s main weaponry had not been damaged and that its crew had been evacuated onto other ships in the Black Sea.
“The source of the blaze on the Moskva cruiser has been contained,” the ministry said in a statement, adding that the vessel remained afloat. “The explosions of ammunition have stopped.”
It said it was still trying to establish the cause of the incident.
The defence ministry had said earlier on Thursday that the Soviet-era ship had been badly damaged by the fire, the latest setback for Russia which has suffered a series of blows since it sent troops into Ukraine on Feb. 24 in what it called a “special military operation.”
Ukraine‘s southern military command said on Thursday that it hit the Moskva with a Neptune anti-ship cruise missile. It said Russian rescue ships were then hampered by ammunition exploding on board as well as bad weather that had caused the Moskva to start sinking.
Reuters was unable to verify either side’s statements.
The Moskva warship rose to prominence early on in the war when it called on Ukrainian border troops defending the strategic Snake Island to surrender – only to be defiantly rejected, the Guardian and BBC report.
The death is being investigated by federal authorities but "the preliminary cause" has been ruled an accident.
The incident took place more than a month ago, on October 13, but it wasn't reported until the British tabloids got wind of the story.
Health officials said Saturday they have confirmed the first U.S. case of a new form of mpox that was first seen in eastern Congo.
Washington is easing limits on what Ukraine can strike with U.S.-made weaponry, U.S. officials told The Associated Press on Sunday.
Ukraine plans to conduct its first long-range attacks in the coming days, sources said, without revealing details due to operational security concerns.
Concerns storm surges could raise water levels between one and three feet above ground level as Tropical Storm Sara makes landfall in Belize.
Air defenses could be heard engaging drones over Kyiv in the night, and a series of powerful blasts rang out across the city as the missile attack was under way in the morning.
John Kirton, head of the G20 Research Group, says the forum is the main tool countries have to prepare for the second Donald Trump presidency.
Israeli airstrikes on the village of Khreibeh in the Baalbek District of eastern Lebanon killed six people on Saturday, including three children the Lebanese health ministry said.
The APEC summit marked the end of trade talks that should lead to Canada signing a new deal with the world's fourth-most populous country next year.
The Port of Montreal authority confirms that the Canada Industrial Relations Board has ordered operations to resume as of 7 a.m. Saturday.