Ukrainian officials confirmed on the night of Wednesday March 2 to Thursday March 3 the presence of the Russian army in Kherson, a large city in the south of the country which Moscow announced that it had captured in the morning after fierce fighting. It is the largest city captured by Russian forces since the invasion began seven days ago.
The head of the regional administration, Gennadi Lakhouta, called on Telegram residents to stay at home, saying that “The occupants are in all areas of the city and are very dangerous”.
The mayor of this city of 290,000 inhabitants, Igor Kolykhaïev, announced to him that he had discussed with “armed guests” in an administration building in Kherson, implying, without naming them, Russian troops. “We had no weapons and were not aggressive. We have shown that we are working to secure the city and are trying to deal with the consequences of the invasion”he said in a message on Facebook.
” So far, so good “
“We are facing huge difficulties with the collection and burial of the dead, the delivery of food and medicine, the collection of garbage, the management of accidents, etc. »he continued.
He assured not to have “make no promises” to the Russians and “simply asked not to shoot people”also announcing a nighttime curfew in the city and a restriction on car traffic. ” So far, so good. The flag flying above us is Ukrainian. And for it to stay that way, these requirements must be met.”he added.
The Russian army announced on Wednesday morning that it had seized Kherson, located not far from the Crimean peninsula annexed in 2014 by Moscow. This port city and its outskirts suffered intense bombardments.
The Russian army has already captured another key Ukrainian port, Berdyansk, and is currently attacking Mariupul, where Mayor Vadim Boitchenko has assured that Ukrainian forces “have pushed back with dignity” the attacks.
“Today was the most difficult and cruel day of the seven-day war. Today they just wanted to destroy us all”he said in a video on Telegram accusing Russian troops of having “fired on our residential buildings”. “Unfortunately, critical infrastructure has again been damaged. We are again without light, without water, without heating”he added.
Ukrainian media also reported the death of eight people, including two children, in bombings in Izium in the Kharkiv region in the north of the country.