Train carrying grain derails in Crimea, no victims: official

A train carrying grain has derailed in the Russian-annexed Crimean peninsula in what Moscow-installed officials on Thursday called a deliberate act.

"Train carriages loaded with grain derailed in the Simferopol region," said Crimea governor Sergei Aksyonov. The railway operator said the incident was caused by "the intervention of third parties".

Telegram channel Mash, which claims to have sources close to Russian law enforcement, said the disruption was caused an explosive device that left a large crater.

Baza, another Russian Telegram outlet with police sources, distributed images of what it said was the aftermath of the incident, showing several overturned rail cars.

Earlier this month, explosive devices derailed two Russian trains in a region bordering Ukraine over consecutive days.

Crimea, annexed from Ukraine in 2014, has been hit intermittedly by explosions at military facilities in incidents since Moscow ordered troops into Ukraine last February.