Destroying passports: Russians increase pressure on Ukrainians flooded in Kherson Oblast

The Russians have taken advantage of the consequences of the blowing up of the Kakhovka hydroelectric power plant to increase occupation pressure on Ukrainians living in the temporarily occupied territory of Kherson Oblast.

Source: Hanna Maliar, Deputy Minister of Defence of Ukraine, on Telegram

Quote: "With the start of the mass evacuation of the population from the flooded area, the command of the Russian occupation forces introduced additional strict filtering measures to identify citizens with pro-Ukrainian sentiments.

At checkpoints, Russian servicemen forced people to pay large sums of money and hand over valuables and jewellery found during searches in order to be allowed to leave for safety.

In addition, the Russian invaders took away and immediately destroyed Ukraine-issued passports, birth certificates and other documents obtained in Ukraine. The invaders also stole personal property from homes abandoned by their owners."

Details: At the same time, in propaganda videos, representatives of the Russian occupation administrations claimed to have allegedly successfully evacuated civilians, although no practical measures were taken to do so.

The occupiers also banned the work of local volunteers who wanted to provide humanitarian aid (food, water, clothing, medicine, etc.) to the victims of the flood.

Background:

• Overnight, the water in Kherson Oblast receded by another 32 cm, but 28 liberated settlements remain flooded.
• On the morning of 6 June, Ukraine’s Operational Command Pivden (South) reported that Russian occupation forces had blown up the Kakhovka Hydroelectric Power Plant (HPP), completely destroying the dam and the power plant's turbine hall. The plant is beyond repair. The draining of the Kakhovka Reservoir threatens the safety of the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant.
• The destruction of the Kakhovka Hydroelectric Power Plant has caused an environmental disaster. The water from the reservoir has begun to flood towns and villages, and evacuations of local residents from dangerous areas have begun. It has caused problems with the water supply in the cities of Kryvyi Rih, Marhanets and Nikopol, Dnipropetrovsk Oblast.
• Volodymyr Zelenskyy stressed that the disaster at the Kakhovka hydroelectric power station created by the Russians would not stop Ukraine from liberating its own territory and would not increase the chances of the occupiers staying on this land.

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