Ukraine celebrates soldiers retaking Kherson; latest setback for Russia
Residents of Kherson have greeted Ukrainian forces with joy as Russia announced its complete withdrawal from the important southern city. Volodymyr Zelensky, the president of Ukraine, referred to Kherson as “our city.” Following the invasion in February, Russia only captured Kherson as its regional capital. One of its major losses during the conflict was the withdrawal, according to observers.
Moscow claimed that 30,000 people had left the area, along with about 5,000 weapons, military equipment, and other resources. According to a Ukrainian side update for the evening, troops had advanced as far as the western bank of the Dnipro river. It is believed that the Russian troops that took Kherson are moving to new locations on the eastern bank of the river. A resident of Kherson spoke of feeling “overwhelmed” when people began to sing and dance in the streets.
Alexei Sandakov, who had previously only identified himself as “Jimmy,” gave his full name to the BBC. Kherson, he asserted, “free right now. It’s distinctive. Since this morning, everyone has been sobbing.” Everyone wanted to embrace the incoming Ukrainian army, he continued. The city’s shift of control came after a quick counteroffensive by Ukraine in recent months, during which Kiev claimed to have retaken 41 localities close to Kherson. President Zelensky stated that the people of Kherson “were waiting” and “never gave up on Ukraine” in his evening address.
Residents, he continued, had been working to clear the streets of “any traces of the occupiers’ stay,” including Russian symbols. Vladimir Putin’s spokesman denied that the action was a humiliating loss in the meantime. After holding phoney “referendums” in four of its occupied provinces in east and south Ukraine, the Kremlin has been treating Kherson and the surrounding area as its own territory for several weeks. Despite the widespread international condemnation of these votes, Ukraine persisted in its attempts to reclaim the impacted territory.
The commander of Russia in Ukraine declared on Wednesday that the city could no longer be supplied, signaling the country’s withdrawal from Kherson. On Thursday, Ukraine claimed advances of up to 7 km on two axes as its troops advanced, despite the fact that there was little evidence of any Russian retreat. On Friday, things advanced swiftly as well. Locals were the first to announce that the Russians had fled Kherson.
Crowds of residents waving flags were later captured on camera cheering on the Ukrainian military at Freedom Square while yelling, “Glory to the Armed Forces of Ukraine!” “No one is going to sleep tonight,” Alexei Sandakov said on Friday afternoon, appearing to still be adjusting to the new circumstances on the ground.
An official from Ukraine claimed that his forces were “nearly completely in possession” of Kherson and the larger area of territory to the west of the Dnipro River. According to Yuriy Sak, a defense minister advisor, troops were being cautious because of worries about Russian traps. According to Mr. Sak, some enemy soldiers may still be present in the city, have taken off their uniforms, and are attempting to pass for citizens. He exhorted them to give up. He praised Kherson’s recapture as a significant victory comparable to his side’s earlier in the war successful efforts to drive Russian troops out of other urban centers, specifically Kyiv, Chernihiv, and Kharkiv.
But he added that he was still “cautious,” citing the potential for Russian reprisals and mentioning an earlier that day missile attack in Mykolaiv that is said to have left at least seven people dead. Including land that has been occupied by the neighboring nation since 2014, Mr. Sak vowed to retake additional territory from Russia.
Despite criticism from pro-war commentators on social media, officials in Russia have downplayed the withdrawal from Kherson and described it as a “redeployment.” The military announced on Wednesday that Russian forces were withdrawing from the city they had taken almost unopposed in the early stages of the war, but Mr. Putin was conspicuously absent.
