Russia Begins Evacuation of Residents from Kherson Occupied Area: "10,000 People Relocating Daily"

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Yuri Choi] Russia has begun evacuating residents after struggling in the occupied southern Ukrainian city of Kherson.

According to AFP and other sources on the 19th (local time), Vladimir Saldo, head of the Kherson occupation administration, stated in an online video that "evacuation of residents has begun by boat," and it is expected that about 10,000 people will relocate daily over the next six days. He explained that 5,000 residents had already been evacuated over the past two days.

He decided to evacuate residents of four villages on the west bank of the Dnipro River in Kherson Oblast to the east bank, and added that costs would be supported for voluntary relocation. Additionally, civilian entry into Kherson city will be prohibited for the next seven days. However, he denied withdrawal rumors, saying, "We are trying to protect the residents and are not abandoning Kherson city."

Russia announced that shelling of Kherson city and regional infrastructure continued on the same day. Kherson Oblast is a strategic key connecting the Crimean Peninsula, annexed by Russia in 2014, and the pro-Russian rebel-controlled Donbas region. For the Russian military, it also serves as a bridgehead for advancing toward Odesa, Ukraine's largest port.

The Russian military occupied most of the Kherson region early on, including taking control of Kherson city, the capital of Kherson Oblast, just days after the war began in late February. The Kherson occupation authorities held a referendum from the 23rd to the 27th of last month, along with other Russian-occupied areas such as Donetsk, Luhansk, and Zaporizhzhia, deciding on annexation to Russia.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.