Residents of Kherson met fighters of the Armed Forces of Ukraine (AFU) after spending about nine months under Russian occupation. Photos and videos were published in social networks, Telegram channels and Ukrainian media.
In the afternoon, people with flags gathered on Svobody Square, opposite the building of the Kherson administration, they sang the anthem, talked and thanked the fighters.
Residents in different parts of the city take to the streets, greet the military and hang Ukrainian flags on buildings, tearing down posters "Russia is here forever." In the video, you can hear people shouting the phrase "Glory to the Heroes!" and “Kherson is Ukraine” and sing songs. They are photographed with servicemen, some people are crying in the frames.
The flag was hung on the building of the National Police of Ukraine, which is now carrying out “stabilization measures” in Kherson. As the head of the National Police, Igor Klymenko, said, a cleansing of the city’s territory is underway, which will last for several weeks.
"Everything will depend on the number of citizens who remained in the de-occupied territories, and the array of information that we will receive from various sources."
With the advent of darkness, some Ukrainians do not disperse, as evidenced by photos and videos posted online. Residents continue to celebrate, despite the fact that there is no electricity and water in the city. One of the entries was published in the evening by the President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky in the Telegram channel.
Zelensky said that today is a historic day, as Ukraine returns Kherson.
“Today, our defenders are on the outskirts of the city. But special units are already in the city. The people of Kherson were waiting. Never abandoned Ukraine. Hope for Ukraine is always justified – and Ukraine always returns its own. And even when the city has not yet been completely cleared of the hostile presence, Kherson residents themselves are already removing Russian symbols and any traces of the occupiers in Kherson from the streets and buildings. It was the same in all other cities liberated by our defenders. So it will be in those cities that are still awaiting our return.”
On November 11, the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine announced the return of control over Kherson. The department appealed to the Russian soldiers, saying that the command had abandoned them to their fate, and the commanders "urged to change into civilian clothes and try to escape from Kherson on their own." In the event of voluntary surrender, the Ukrainian authorities promised security to Russian soldiers.
The withdrawal of Russian troops from the right bank of the Dnieper and from Kherson opens up new kill zones for HIMARS MLRS missiles – for example, the north of Crimea. Military experts told The Insider about the strategic importance of Kherson and further actions of the Armed Forces of Ukraine.
