An explosion damaged railway tracks in southwestern Russia's Voronezh region on Thursday, partially bringing train traffic to a halt, local media and officials said.
The blast occurred at the 725th kilometer of the Yevdakovo-Saguny line, halting train traffic in one direction, the Baza Telegram channel and the local news outlet Vesti Voronezh reported.
Voronezh Governor Alexander Gusev confirmed the incident, saying that the damage was discovered by a train operator.
“There were no injuries,” Gusev wrote on his Telegram channel. “Emergency services are on site investigating the cause, and a repair crew from the South Eastern Railway is working to restore service. I am personally monitoring the situation.”
He did not say who was suspected of carrying out the attack.
Later Thursday, Russia's Investigative Committee, which probes major crimes, said it opened a criminal terrorism case in connection with the railway explosion.
It is the latest in a series of explosions targeting railway infrastructure in western Russia that have disrupted train traffic, caused casualties and further strained relations between Moscow and Kyiv even as the two countries pursue peace talks.
Ukraine has regularly struck military and logistical sites inside Russia in an effort to thwart Moscow's ability to carry out its full-scale invasion.
Previously, a similar explosion hit a railway line in the neighboring Belgorod region on May 25. Officials said that an explosive device had been placed under the tracks and detonated as a train passed.
While no injuries were reported and authorities said the train did not derail, the blast damaged overhead power lines and temporarily halted traffic.
The affected line is part of a corridor linking Moscow to Tula, Oryol, Kursk and the border town of Valuyki. Ukrainian Telegram channels described the site as a “key logistical route” for the Russian military.
Then, on the night of May 31 and into June 1, two railway bridges collapsed in the Bryansk and Kursk regions, killing seven people and injuring over 100 in what authorities described as a coordinated attack. President Vladimir Putin accused Ukraine of orchestrating the “terrorist attacks.”
Those attacks, which Ukraine has not claimed responsibility for, were “directed at thwarting the negotiation process,” Putin said.
Putin also claimed the attacks were evidence that the Ukrainian government was “transforming into a terrorist organization,” adding that the Kyiv regime “does not need peace at all,” as it would mean the loss of power for them.
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