Russian airstrikes renewed this Thursday morning on the Ukrainian capital, Kyiv, where warning sirens sounded after a night described as one of the fiercest, according to local officials. Many observers, politicians, and heads of state anticipate that the city, now largely besieged from various directions, will face difficult days ahead.
**Mariupol Under Siege and Resisting**
In the southeastern part of the country, a representative of the separatist forces in Donetsk announced that the city of Mariupol, located on the Sea of Azov, is under siege. However, the Ukrainian Ministry of Defense asserted that Mariupol is still holding out, firmly denying that Russian forces have taken control of the city.
**Fall of Kherson**
The most significant recent development is the fall of Kherson, the large city in southern Ukraine. Ukrainian officials confirmed late Wednesday to Thursday that the Russian army has taken control of Kherson, which Moscow announced had fallen into their hands following fierce battles. The head of the regional administration, Hennadiy Lahuta, stated in a message on Telegram that "the Russians are present in all the streets of the city and they are very dangerous."
**Crossing the Bridge**
This means that Russian forces can now cross the Dnieper River, which divides Ukraine into two parts, and head west and north to attack Kyiv from a different direction. Igor Kolykhaiiv, the mayor of the city with a population of 290,000, revealed that he spoke in the city hall with "armed individuals," referring to unnamed Russian military personnel. He also mentioned in a Facebook post, "We did not have weapons and we were not aggressive. We showed that we are working to secure the city and trying to deal with the consequences of the invasion."
**Collecting and Burying the Dead**
Furthermore, he confirmed that the city "faces significant difficulties in collecting the dead and burying them, delivering food and medicine, collecting garbage, managing incidents, and so forth." He continued, saying, "I have made no promises" to the Russians and simply requested that they refrain from shooting at people. The mayor also announced that Russian forces have imposed a nighttime curfew in the city and restrictions on vehicle movement. He clarified at the same time that "everything is fine so far," adding, "the flag flying above us is the flag of Ukraine, and for it to remain so, we must respect the demands imposed by the Russian forces."
It is worth noting that the Russian military operation began on February 24, 2022, just days after Moscow recognized the independence of the separatist regions of Donetsk and Luhansk in eastern Ukraine, following months of escalating tensions between the Kremlin and the West. This prompted the European Union, the United States, as well as the United Kingdom, Australia, Canada, Japan, and others to impose severe and painful sanctions on Russia, and led to a flow of Western weapons and military support to Kyiv to confront the Russian attack.
