Free Republic

KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Russian-installed authorities in Ukraine told all residents of the city of Kherson to leave “immediately” Saturday ahead of an expected advance by Ukrainian troops waging a counteroffensive to recapture one of the first urban areas Russia took after invading the country. In a post on the Telegram messaging service, the pro-Kremlin regional administration strongly urged civilians to use boat crossings over a major river to move deeper into Russian-held territory, citing a tense situation on the front and the threat of shelling and alleged plans for “terror attacks” by Kyiv. Kherson has been in Russian hands...

March 31, 2022 went down in history as the point of no return in the war. It was on this day that the city of Bucha, in Kyiv region, was liberated from the Russian invaders. At the same time, the world was shaken by the terrible footage of Russian crimes: hundreds of bodies of civilians brutally killed and tortured by the Russian occupiers, known as the Bucha Massacre. It was a shock that the next day, April 1, 2022, Russian invaders captured the city of Izyum, which is in Kharkiv region. The city used to be unremarkable and unknown to...

Ukraine has launched a new front in the counteroffensive, this time moving east into the Kharkiv region. Yesterday the Guardian reported the town of Balakliia had been encircled by Ukrainian troops. Today, Balakliia is more than encircled. President Zelensky just published this video of Ukrainian soldiers standing on a Russian flag in the city with the Ukrainian flag flying behind them. (snip) And the push east has already moved on to another small town called Volokhiv Yar where the Ukrainian flag has also been raised.

As Ed Morrisey pointed out this morning, the Ukrainian counteroffensive in the east has been moving faster than anyone expected, including obviously the Russians. A couple of days ago, Ukrainian forces retook the town of Balakliia and another small town called Volokhiv Yar. From there they moved east and took control of Kupyansk.Ukrainian troops already in Kupyansk.Russians basically offered no resistance.pic.twitter.com/4c2UqjEk1w— Illia Ponomarenko 🇺🇦 (@IAPonomarenko) September 10, 2022That was a significant win because it meant Ukraine was in control of the rail lines which supplied Russian outposts to the south, in particular Izyum. Here’s a crude map showing the location...