Russian-installed authorities in Kherson ordered all residents to leave “immediately”, amid warnings of a looming Ukrainian counteroffensive to recapture the city.
In a Telegram post, pro-Kremlin regional authorities called on all civilians to use boat crossings over a major river to move deeper into Russian-held territory.
It cited a tense situation on the front of the southern Ukrainian city and the threat of shelling and alleged “terror attacks” by Kyiv.
Kherson has been in Vladimir Putin’s hands since the early days of the near eight-month-long war against Ukraine. The city is the capital of one of four regions Putin illegally annexed last month.
While thousands of civilians have been leaving for days across the Dnieper River, Saturday’s alert marks an urgent development.
On Friday, Ukrainian forces bombarded Russian positions across the province, targeting resupply routes and inching closer to making a full assault on Kherson. Ukraine has retaken some villages in the region’s north since launching its counteroffensive in late August.
Another Russia-installed official estimated Saturday that around 25,000 people from across the region had made their way over the Dnieper. In a Telegram post, Kirill Stremousov claimed that civilians were relocating willingly.
“People are actively moving because today the priority is life. We do not drag anyone anywhere,” he said.
Ukrainian and Western officials have expressed concern about potential forced transfers of residents to Russia or Russian-occupied territory.
Ukrainian officials have urged Kherson residents to resist attempts to relocate them, with one local official alleging that Moscow wanted to take civilians hostage and use them as human shields.
Elsewhere in the invaded country, hundreds of thousands of people in central and western Ukraine woke up on Saturday to power outages and periodic bursts of gunfire.
In its latest war tactic, Russia has intensified strikes on power stations, water supply systems and other key infrastructure across the country.
Ukraine’s air force said in a statement Saturday that Russia had launched “a massive missile attack” targeting “critical infrastructure,” adding that it had downed 18 out of 33 cruise missiles launched from the air and sea.
In a Telegram post, President Volodymyr Zelensky referenced 36 missiles, “most of which were shot down.” The reason for the discrepancy in numbers was not immediately clear.
Air raid sirens blared across Ukraine twice by early afternoon, sending residents scurrying into shelters as Ukrainian air defence tried to shoot down explosive drones and incoming missiles.
“Several rockets” targeting Ukraine’s capital were shot down Saturday morning, Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko said on the Telegram messaging service.
The president’s office said in its morning update that five suicide drones were downed in the central Cherkasy region southeast of Kyiv.
