As it happened: Russia says Crimea blast was an act of sabotage

We're wrapping up today's live coverage shortly.

But before we do, here's a recap of today's events:

• Several explosions were reported in the Russian-occupied peninsula of Crimea
• The Russians called an explosion at a military base an "act of sabotage"
• Ukraine hasn't claimed responsibility for the blasts, but an adviser to Ukraine's President Zelensky called it "demilitarisation in action"
• Russian-installed regional leader Sergei Aksyonov declared an "emergency situation"
• He added that two people had been hurt in one of the blasts, while others were being evacuated
• Local media reported record numbers of people "scrambling" to escape across the Crimean Bridge, over the Kerch Strait, which links Crimea and Russia
• Meanwhile, a ship carrying wheat to the Horn of Africa as part of the UN food programme has left Odesa
• And French President Emmanuel Macron and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky have both revealed details of a phone call in which they discussed concerns over the Zaporizhzhia nuclear facility

That's all for now. We'll be back with more details as events unfold.

President Zelensky has, again, accused Russia of “nuclear blackmail” over tensions at the Zaporizhzhia complex.

For days, Russia and Ukraine have accused each other of shelling the site, which is Europe’s largest nuclear power plant.

Ukraine says Russia has deployed around 500 forces to the complex, who are using it as a shield to launch attacks against Ukrainian towns.

Officials here claim Russia is creating this crisis to try to force Ukraine and other countries to comply with their conditions. Russia, on the other hand, denies the accusations, and says its troops are, in fact, protecting the plant.

It’s hard to independently verify the allegations, as the plant is off limits. The facility has been under Russian occupation since early March, although Ukrainian technicians still operate it. They’re working under pressure, while there are claims some have been detained, tortured and beaten.

Calls for international monitors to be allowed to the site have so far failed to result in a deal. The UN says it’s ready to support an inspection by the nuclear watchdog, but both countries would have to agree to such a visit.

For now, that looks unlikely.

Getty ImagesCopyright: Getty Images

Estonia plans to remove Soviet-era war monuments from public places.

The move is aimed at preventing them "from mobilising more hostility in society and tearing open old wounds" following Russia's invasion of Ukraine, the government says.

An iconic T-34 tank in the city of Narva, which borders Russia, was taken to the Estonian War Museum.

Narva is Estonia's third biggest city, where 97% of its population of about 60,000 people speak Russian.

Russia's war in Ukraine is stirring tension in Narva in particular, Estonia fears.

Prime Minister Kaja Kallas says her government would not "afford Russia the opportunity to use the past to disturb the peace in Estonia".

"Considering the speed of the increasing tensions and confusion around memorials in Narva, we must act quickly to ensure public order and internal security."

The World War Two cemetery will also be relocated with "a neutral grave marker" - an issue that the government acknowledges may create tensions.

EPACopyright: EPA

A Russian court has fined global streaming service Twitch 2m roubles ($33,000; £27,000) for failing to remove a video of what it said was “fake” information about alleged war crimes in the Ukrainian town of Bucha, Reuters reports, citing Russian media.

The court accused Twitch, a popular live-streaming service for video gamers, of hosting a short clip of a girl from the town of Bucha, northwest of Kyiv. The original report, in the Kommersant newspaper, did not specify the video’s content.

Russia has been accused of conducting a massacre in Bucha in the early weeks of its invasion of Ukraine. Its leaders have threatened to fine websites they say are hosting “fake” content related to the conflict.

ReutersCopyright: Reuters

Earlier we brought you details of a tweet from Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, who says he's been discussing Russia's "nuclear terrorism" with French President Emmanuel Macron.

Now Macron confirms he's raised his own concerns over Ukraine's nuclear facilities.

He adds that he backed a proposal by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) watchdog for investigators to be sent to examine the situation around the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant.

There have been concerns in recent days about shelling near the nuclear plant, which is the largest in Europe.

Both Russia and Ukraine blame each other for risks to the nuclear facility.

Although it was seized by Russia, it's still operated by Ukrainian technicians.

AFPCopyright: AFP

For over a century, Crimea has represented an affordable, familiar and accessible destination for Russians seeking a Mediterranean climate, long beaches and picturesque coastline near home.

A popular destination since the 19th century, it continued to host crowds of Russian tourists under the Soviet Union, when the peninsula became awash with resorts, sanatoriums and hotels that workers from across the USSR flocked to on state-funded holidays.

After Russia annexed Crimea in 2014, the Russian government started pouring billions into Crimea's infrastructure, even building a 19km (12 miles) bridge - known as the Crimean Bridge - to connect the Crimean area of Kerch to the Russian mainland.

And when European countries banned air travel from Russia following the invasion of Ukraine last February, Crimea climbed even further up the list of the most sought-after tourist destinations for Russians.

However, continued warfare in southern Ukraine has increased the security risks to Crimea, and civilian airports in popular tourist destinations such as Simferopol have closed.

People can still travel by land, although the Kerch bridge is often gridlocked due to heavy traffic. Travelling by train from Moscow can take up to 35 hours.

The latest strikes on the Crimean peninsula are set to put off even more Russians from travelling to its resorts. As explosions continue to be reported around the area, whether holidaymakers will carry on the tradition of flocking to Crimean beaches remains to be seen.

Getty ImagesCopyright: Getty Images

A bridge linking Crimea with Russia is experiencing record-breaking traffic as people scramble to leave, say local media reports.

It comes as Russian-installed authorities say that train services are being affected by railway lines damaged by the explosions in Crimea.

The Crimean Bridge, across the Kerch Strait, was opened to great fanfare in 2018, four years after Russia’s annexation.

Since February this year, senior Ukrainian officials have frequently hinted that the bridge itself may become a target of their missiles.

But any strike would be highly controversial, as the Crimean Bridge is arguably a non-military target.

ReutersCopyright: Reuters

Away from Crimea, earlier today a ship carrying wheat to the Horn of Africa left Pivdennyi Port near Odesa – it's the first ship chartered by the UN food programme to depart Ukraine since Russia’s invasion.

The vessel, carrying 23,000 metric tonnes of wheat, is bound for east Africa and will provide crucial humanitarian relief to an area ravaged by famine, in part caused by the blockade brought about by the war.

According to the World Food Programme (WFP), which bought more than half its wheat from Ukraine before the conflict, a record 345 million people in 82 countries are now facing acute food insecurity and need urgent humanitarian assistance.

"Getting the Black Sea Ports open is the single most important thing we can do right now to help the world’s hungry," says WFP’s David Beasley.

In July, Russia and Ukraine struck a deal to allow the export of grain, although less than 24 hours later Russian missiles targeted a port in Odesa.

.Copyright: .

Russia’s security agency has accused Ukrainian “saboteurs” of destroying six electricity pylons in the country’s western Kursk Region in recent days, impacting operations at a nearby power plant.

The Federal Security Service (FSB) said the pylons had been blown up in Kursk's Kurchatovsky District on 4, 9 and 12 August.

It said the incident had led to a “violation in the technological process of functioning” of the Kursk nuclear power plant - but gave no further details.

The accusation comes on the same day Russian officials alleged an "act of sabotage" had led to explosions at a military base on occupied Crimea.

Getty ImagesCopyright: Getty Images

Let's have a quick recap of some key moments of the last few months:

• 21 February: Russian President Vladimir Putin announces he recognises two pro-Russian breakaway regions in eastern Ukraine as independent states, leading to the first economic sanctions from Nato countries the following day
• 24 February: Putin launches the invasion of Ukraine, describing it as a "special military operation" in the east, with the aim of "demilitarisation and denazification" of the country

• 7 March: Ukraine and Russia agree to open humanitarian corridors to evacuate civilians but attempts failed as Russian shelling continued
• 1 April: Horrors in Bucha emerge after Russian troops began to withdraw from the city near to Kyiv - bodies were found lying the streets, indicating a civilian massacre
• 20 May: Russia takes control of the Azovstal steelworks in Mariupol after a long siege
• 1 August: First grain ship leaves Ukraine under a landmark deal with Russia after its forces had been blockading Ukrainian ports since February

.Copyright: .

A little earlier we reported that Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky had called on world leaders to impose more sanctions on Russia to force its troops to leave the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant.

President Zelensky has since tweeted that he has discussed Russia's "nuclear terrorism" with French President Emmanuel Macron.

In a tweet, Zelensky says he thanked Macron for "tangible defense aid" and repeated his call to increase sanctions on Russia.

Russia has launched a missile attack on the Zhytomyr District in northern Ukraine, the head of the regional military administration says.

Writing on Telegram, Vitaliy Bunyechko says: "Warning. Two explosions have been confirmed in the territory of Zhytomyr District as a result of the missile strike."

He later adds that the missiles were fired from Belarus and that there were no casualties as a result of the incident.

The investigative project Belaruski Hayun, which follows Russian troops' movement in Belarus, noted that the launch could be part of an exercise which Belarusian and Russian troops are holding in the area.

Let's take a look at the latest from Ukraine.

• Several blasts have again been reported in the Russian-occupied peninsula of Crimea
• Russian newspaper Kommersant reported that explosions were heard near a Russian base in Simferopol in south-central Crimea
• The Russian defence ministry described another explosion at a military base in Crimea’s Dzhankoi District an "act of sabotage" and said several civilian facilities had been damaged
• Ukraine has not claimed responsibility for the blasts, but an adviser to Ukraine's President Zelensky called the fresh explosions "demilitarisation in action"
• Crimea's Russian-installed regional leader Sergei Aksyonov has declared an "emergency situation regime" in northern Crimea as a result of the explosions

.Copyright: .

We're getting reports in now that two people have been injured in one of the explosions.

Sergei Aksyonov, the Russian-installed head of Crimea, has been telling reporters from Russian news agencies that people are being evacuated from within 5km of the site of an explosion in the village of Azovske in the Dzhankoi district.

"So far, we have information on two victims: one man has a shrapnel wound, and one was crushed by a wall," he says.

"Their lives are not in danger, fortunately."

This morning’s explosions in Crimea show how vulnerable Moscow is in the region, says Andrew MacLeod, a visiting professor at King’s College London. Russian officials initially said a fire triggered the blasts, before later blaming “sabotage”. "It really does confirm that the Russians are vulnerable everywhere in Crimea," the conflict and security expert tells the BBC.

Quote Message: "How many units of saboteurs do the Ukrainians have? Don’t know. How many attacks could they launch? Don’t know. How effective can they be? Don’t know. So if I was a Russian soldier or a Russian senior officer on Crimea right now I’d be very worried." from Andrew MacLeod

"How many units of saboteurs do the Ukrainians have? Don’t know. How many attacks could they launch? Don’t know. How effective can they be? Don’t know. So if I was a Russian soldier or a Russian senior officer on Crimea right now I’d be very worried."

Today’s explosions follow a string of blasts last week that destroyed Russian warplanes at a Black Sea base on the Crimean coast.

"What’s clear now is the Ukrainians feel emboldened, the Russians feel a little bit vulnerable, but neither side has the power to overwhelm the other, so we might be in for a very long stalemate", he says.

The spokesman for Ukraine’s Air Force Command has said the country is "satisfied" by today’s explosions in occupied Crimea, but that Russia was responsible. Yuriy Ignat said Russia’s failure to "observe fire precautions" was to blame.

Russia's defence ministry earlier said a fire had triggered the blasts at a military base, before later blaming "sabotage".

"The enemy's not observing fire precautions, hence the problems, but we are of course satisfied by the fact because Dzhankoi [where the explosions took place] was one of the locations where the enemy kept their helicopters and other equipment," Ignat told a press conference.

Crimea's Russian-installed authorities have declared an "emergency situation" in the north of the occupied peninsula following explosions at a military base in Dzhankoi District, according to Interfax news agency.

"We are in an emergency situation regime," the Russian news agency quoted regional head Sergei Aksyonov as saying.

Interfax says the move "expands the boundaries of the emergency situation regime" following its introduction in the west of the peninsula after an explosion at an air base there earlier in August.

BBC Monitoring points out that, under Russian regulations, an "emergency situation" is different from a state of emergency, which can only be introduced by the president and can entail severe restrictions on people's freedoms and rights.

Explosions have been heard near a Russian base in Simferopol in south-central Crimea, according to the Russian newspaper Kommersant.

It quotes locals saying black smoke could be seen rising from the base.

Security forces are thought to be investigating a potential drone attack on a munitions depot.

ReutersCopyright: Reuters

Railway traffic in Russian-annexed Crimea was disrupted following explosions at a military base, Russia’s RIA news agency reports.

The agency reports that seven passenger trains had been delayed and rail traffic on part of the line in northern Crimea had been suspended.

The Russian-installed head of Crimea, Sergei Aksyonov, says that the railway, which was damaged by explosions in the Dzhankoy district, has already been repaired.

On Telegram, Aksyonov says rail traffic will resume after the works are completed.