Ukraine could launch a counteroffensive in Kherson before winter. Russia responds, bringing civilians from the area west of the Dnipro. Now 70,000 people are to follow east of the river. The possible shelling of a dam is threatening their lives, according to the Russian governor.
In view of the Ukrainian offensive to recapture Kherson, the Russian occupation authorities in the southern Ukrainian region have announced the evacuation of tens of thousands more people. "We will resettle and relocate up to 70,000 people," Moscow-appointed Kherson governor Vladimir Saldo said on a live radio broadcast. The people affected are therefore on a 15-kilometer-wide strip east of the Dnipro River.
The Russian army announced last week that 70,000 civilians had evacuated their homes on the west bank of the Dnipro. Saldo said the new evacuations were decided because of the risk of a "possible missile attack" on a dam on the river, which could flood the left bank.
According to the governor, the evacuations have already begun and will now be extended to Cherson or "other regions of Russia". Saldo did not give any specific details. He said on Monday that clearing the 15-kilometre-wide strip of shore would enable the Russian army to build better defenses "to repel the Ukrainian attack."
The Kherson region is partially under Russia's control. Last month, Russia annexed Ukraine's four regions of Kherson, Zaporizhia, Donetsk and Luhansk after mock referendums. The step is not recognized internationally. For several weeks, the Ukrainian army has been conducting an offensive to recapture the entire Kherson region, advancing eastwards from the west.
