(Reuters) – Pro-Russian authorities in the Kherson region of southern Ukraine said on Friday they would evacuate people with reduced mobility from the town of Kakhovka as part of a a plan to relocate civilians to the eastern shore of the .
Russia withdrew last month from the western bank of the river, where the city of Kherson is located, in the largest troop withdrawal since the invasion of Ukraine began in late February.
The Dnieper has since become the main front line, and fighting between Ukrainians and Russians is intense between the two banks.
The Russian occupation administration of Kakhovka said those who are bedridden or disabled will be taken to the town of Henichesk in southeastern Ukraine.
“Take care of yourself and your loved ones,” the administration said in a message on the Telegram messaging app, urging people to register for the evacuations.
A special hotline has been set up for people who need to be evacuated.
An operator of this “hotline” indicates on the telephone that evacuations are taking place on the eastern bank of the river, in particular in the sectors of Olechky and Nova Kakhovka.
“Since October 20, martial law has been in place. All civilians are being evacuated,” the operator said, answering calls.
The operator refers to the martial law decreed by Russian President Vladimir Putin for the Kherson region and three other partially occupied regions of Ukraine which have been proclaimed an integral part of Russia, a decision denounced by Western countries .
Before leaving Kherson, the Russian army evacuated tens of thousands of inhabitants in operations that Kyiv describes as “forced deportation”.
(Report Mark Trevelyan, French version Matthieu Protard)
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