Ukraine: occupation ‘government’ of Kherson region starts evacuation of ‘state bodies’ to Crimea

The occupation “administration” of Ukraine’s Kherson region has begun to evacuate the Russia-installed “state bodies” to Crimea, the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine (AFU) reports in its evening bulletin.

“The occupiers are intensifying filtering measures in the Kherson oblast and have begun the process of evacuating so-called ‘state’ institutions. According to available information, employees and property of banks and a pension fund are being taken from Kherson to the temporarily occupied territory of Crimea,” the General Staff wrote.

On 14 October, the pro-Russian administration of the Kherson region “strongly recommended” its residents to come to Russia for a “humanitarian recreation and wellness trip”. On the next day, it was announced that Russia had taken several thousand children out of the region. Later, Kirill Stremousov, deputy chief of the region’s occupation administration, stated that Ukraine had launched an offensive in the Kherson region.

Experts with the Washington-based Institute for the Study of War (ISW) pointed out earlier that elite units of the Russian army previously deployed in the north of the Kherson region and on the Lyman front had been unable unable to resist the Ukrainian counteroffensive in the area. The New York Times earlier reported, citing US officials, that Russian army commanders had wanted to retreat from Ukraine’s Kherson to save the equipment and manpower, however, Russian President Vladimir Putin did not let them do that.