Russian forces captured Kherson, a port city in southern Ukraine, on Wednesday after days of heavy bombing and shelling. On Saturday, the city’s mayor Ihor Kolykhayev said Russian troops were everywhere and that the city of about 300,000 people was without electricity and water and in dire need of humanitarian aid.
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compulsory running out
The residents of the city now under Russian hegemony are afraid to go out even to buy basic necessities. A CNN report said. When they go out to buy essentials, they often find grocery stores empty and medicines are not available.
According to the mayor, Russians tried to provide aid but locals in Ukraine refused to accept it.
Yulia Alekseeva, the mother of a two-month-old baby, told CNN she is struggling to find diapers and other baby products. He said, “There are very few people in the city. We also have a grandmother who has dementia, who is in constant need of diapers and medicines, which are not even available.”
‘Russians shoot those who try to leave’
Most of the residents either fled or joined the resistance and some who remain locked inside their homes, the streets are empty for Russian soldiers.
According to residents who spoke to CNN, Russian soldiers are firing at anyone who tries to leave the city. On Thursday, Russian forces attempted to shoot two people at a checkpoint, killing one and injuring another, a Ukrainian official said.
“We are in hiding. There is a curfew in the city, if people go out after eight o’clock in the evening, they shoot to kill,” said Yulia Alekseeva.
ambulance stopped
CNN reported that even ambulances leaving Kherson have been blocked from reaching nearby villages.
The same official said a woman who had been in labor for a long time on the outskirts of Kherson, had to give birth in consultation with her doctor via video conferencing after the Russian military had blocked the medical team from reaching her. A day after Russian soldiers begged, the mother and child were allowed to reach the hospital.
Andrey Abba, a local, told CNN: “Even if we want to get women and children out of here, it’s absolutely impossible. They shoot anyone who tries to leave.” “
determined to live
Even as they live in constant fear under Russian occupation, the locals are determined to stay. Andrey Abba said he was determined to stay in Kherson, regardless of occupation, as long as the Ukrainian flag continues to fly over government buildings.
On Saturday, local people held a big demonstration in Kherson in protest against the Russian occupation.
Ukraine’s Foreign Minister Dmitry Kuleba shared footage of the protest on Twitter and wrote, “Courageous Kherson inspires Ukraine and the world! Thousands of peaceful Ukrainians protest Russian occupation in front of armed Russian troops. What a sentiment.”
“We are less afraid of being under bombs than of being part of Russia,” said local Svetlana Zorina.
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