Russian forces ‘forcibly evacuating’ civilians in Kherson as Ukraine troops ‘cross Dnipro river’

Russian forces are “forcibly evacuating” civilians in the occupied Kherson region, Ukrainian authorities have said, amid the reported advances of Kyiv’s troops across the Dnipro river.

Oleksandr Samoylenko, the Ukrainian head of Kherson’s regional council, said he had information evacuations had started on Sunday “with an excuse of protecting civilians from the consequences of heavy fighting in the area.”

Russian troops were “trying to steal as much as they can” as they withdrew, he added.

It come after the Institute for the Study of War, a US-based thinktank, suggested Ukrainian forces in the region had established positions on the east bank of the Dnipro for the first time since the early days of Russia’s invasion. Russia has denied the report and Kyiv is yet to confirm it.

It comes amid an apparent increase in Ukrainian military activity in the south of the country which some analysts believe is a precursor to Kyiv’s long anticipated counter-offensive.

Meanwhile Kyiv has accused Russian forces of deploying the kind of war tactics it used in Syria to destroy the city of Bakhmut as fierce fighting continues in the east of the country.

“The fiercest battles are going on now for Bakhmut and Maryinka,” deputy defence minister Hanna Maylar said on Monday night.

“The aggressor has concentrated his main efforts in the direction of Bakhmut and is trying to dislodge our units from positions in Bakhmut. Using the so-called ‘Syrian tactics’ of total destruction of buildings and structures, the enemy in some places has [made] progress at the expense of destroyed objects,” the minister said on Telegram.

Ukraine and Russia both have described the months of fighting for Bakhmut, the war’s longest battle, as key to exhausting enemy forces and preventing them from pressing attacks elsewhere along the 620-mile front line.

In its daily update on the war in Ukraine on Tuesday the UK Ministry of Defence said that Russia’s average daily casualty rate has “highly likely fallen by around 30%”.

Figures released by the Ukrainian General Staff suggest a reduction from a daily average of 776 Russian casualties in March, to an average of 568 so far in April, it said.

It concluded: “Russia’s losses have highly likely reduced as their attempted winter offensive has failed to achieve its objectives, and Russian forces are now focused on preparing for anticipated Ukrainian offensive operations.”