THIS is the moment Ukraine blitzed a Russian shadow fleet super tanker in the middle of the Mediterranean – more than 1,200 miles outside its territory.
The Oman-flagged Qendil was hit by multiple drones in international waters, Ukraine’s SBU service claimed.
The 800ft long vessel – which was unladen at the time – appeared to be sailing towards Russia, via the Gibraltar strait.
Ukraine has ramped up attacks on vessels that help Russia evade sanctions to deter the ships’ owners from backing Moscow.
Shadow fleet ships take fuel from Russia before transferring it to other ships in international waters that then sell it on open markets.
The SBU spy service confirmed the hit in a statement: “The SBU for the first time hit a tanker of the Russian ‘shadow fleet’ in the neutral waters of the Mediterranean Sea.”
It follows an SBU strike on a Russian Kilo-class submarine as Britain’s MI6 vowed to ramp up support for World War Two-style sabotage ops.
The SBU added: “As a result of multi-stage measures in the neutral waters of the Mediterranean Sea, the SBU ‘Alpha’ hit the tanker of the so-called ‘shadow fleet’ of the Russian Federation ‘QENDIL’ with aerial drones.
“At the time of the special operation, the Russian ship was not carrying any cargo, but was empty.
“Accordingly, this attack did not pose any threat to the environmental situation in the region.”
An informed source in the SBU noted: “The Russian Federation used this tanker to circumvent sanctions and earn money that went to the war against Ukraine.
“Therefore, from the point of view of international law and the laws and customs of war, this is an absolutely legitimate target for the SBU.
“The enemy must understand that Ukraine will not stop and will beat him in any part of the world, wherever he is.
“As a result of the attack, the tanker “QENDIL” received critical damage and cannot be used for its intended purpose.”
It comes after three Russian soldiers were filmed crossing the control line at the Estonian border near Vasknarva, raising fears of escalating tensions that could lead to World War Three.
The soldiers, seen in grainy footage moving through mist, entered Nato territory along the Narva River for over 20 minutes before returning to their aircraft and crossing back into Russia.
Estonian Interior Minister Igor Taro was the one to reveal that the incident had been documented.
“The illegal border crossing has been documented, and we have it on video from the surveillance camera that detected the crossing,” he said.
“There was no immediate security threat, but the [Estonian] police and border guards have significantly increased their presence and patrols.”
Meanwhile, a former Brit soldier has been jailed for 13 years in one of Vladimir Putin’s hellhole gulags after being captured fighting for Ukraine.
A Moscow-controlled court in the occupied Donetsk region convicted Hayden Davies, who was captured last year, and ordered him to serve his sentence in a maximum-security penal colony.
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