War in Ukraine: After the destruction of the dam, “Nova Kakhovka is a dead city”

This is one of the biggest human and environmental disasters since the beginning of the war in Ukraine. After the partial destruction of the Kakhovka hydroelectric dam, controlled by Russian forces, between the night of Monday June 5 and Tuesday June 6, tens of thousands of civilians are threatened by rising water on both sides of the Dnieper, which is also the front line. “More than 40,000 people” Most likely, they will be affected, said General Prosecutor of Ukraine Andriy Kostin. “Ukrainian authorities are evacuating over 17,000. Unfortunately, over 25,000 civilians remain in Russian-controlled territory.”, he explained. On Tuesday, twenty-four districts were already flooded by midday, Ukraine’s Interior Ministry said.

On the left bank of the Dnieper, occupied by the Russian army, the occupation authorities ended the announcement of evacuation after the disturbances in the morning. In a strange video released by his press office, Vladimir Saldo, the governor appointed by Moscow, poses in a tired state with a military helmet on his head and confirms that “All cities live normally in the flow (…), People are walking normally, shops are open and even businesses are working.”. In the background, in the picture, we see the central square of Nova Kakhovka below, abandoned and submerged in brown water.

“Communications were cut off until mid-day, and I was afraid that the Russians would leave us in Crimea by force. But nothing like that happened.”– says Pavel N., a pensioner from Nova Kakhovka, through an encrypted message. The man requests anonymity for security reasons. ” The occupation administration left and took everything. Nova Kakhovka is a ghost town. There’s still an ambulance in town and that’s it. The hospital, polyclinic and pharmacy are closed. The Russians took all the valuable material on board.”. He hastily moved to his in-laws house because his street is completely flooded. For him, the disaster was predictable. “I am not surprised by what is happening. Everyone here has known for a long time that the dam was acquired by the Russians. »

“war crime”

Kiev and Moscow blame each other for its destruction. Ukraine accused Russian forces of blowing up the dam and condemned A “War Crime”. After denying in the morning any explosion at the level of the dam, the Russian authorities pointed the finger. “Terror Diversion” Ukrainian army “To divert attention from their failed counter-attack”According to the press-speaker of the Ministry of Defense.