Kyiv, Ukraine
CNN
–
Russian forces have completed the withdrawal of troops from the Kherson region of Ukraine west of the Dnipro River, including the city of Kherson, the Russian Defense Ministry said on Friday.
It came after Moscow ordered a partial retreat from the region on Wednesday, marking one of the biggest military defeats for the Kremlin since the war began.
“In the direction of Kherson, the movement of Russian military units to the left bank of the Dnieper River was completed at 05:00. [Moscow time] this morning,” the ministry said on its official Telegram channel.
“No military equipment or weapons were left on the right bank,” the statement said, referring to the west side of the river. “All Russian soldiers have moved to the left bank of the Dnieper” – the Russian spelling for the river.
Photos and videos on social media on Friday showed the Antonivskyi Bridge, the main conduit across the Dnipro in the Kherson region, destroyed.
An image that went viral on social media on Friday showed a Ukrainian flag in central Kherson, though there was no hint that Ukrainian troops were still not in that city.
