Stay up to date with notifications from The Independent

Notifications can be managed in browser preferences.

Ukraine's troops work to advance on Russian-held side of key river after gaining footholds

Ukraine's military says its troops are working to push back Russian forces positioned on the east bank of the Dnieper River

Via AP news wire
Saturday 18 November 2023 13:46 GMT

Your support helps us to tell the story

From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.

At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.

The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.

Your support makes all the difference.

Ukrainian troops worked to push back Russian forces positioned on the east bank of the Dnieper River, the military said Saturday, a day after Ukraine claimed to have secured multiple bridgeheads on that side of the river that divides the country's partially occupied Kherson region.

Ukraine’s establishment of footholds on on the Russian-held bank of the Dnieper represents a small but potentially significant strategic advance in the midst of a war largely at a standstill. The General Staff of Ukraine’s armed forces said its troops there had repelled 12 attacks by the Russian army between Friday and Saturday.

The Ukrainians now were trying to “push back Russian army units as far as possible in order to make life easier for the (western) bank of the Kherson region, so that they get shelled less,” Natalia Humeniuk, spokesperson for Ukraine’s Southern Operational Command, said.

In response, the Russian military used “tactical aviation,” including Iranian-made Shahed exploding drones, to try to pin down Ukraine's troops, Humeniuk said.

The wide river is a natural dividing line along the southern battlefront. Since withdrawing from the city of Kherson and retreating across the Dnieper a year ago, Moscow's forces have regularly shelled communities on the Ukrainian-held side of the river to prevent Kyiv's soldiers from advancing toward Russia-annexed Crimea.

Elsewhere, air defenses shot down 29 out of 38 Shahed drones launched against Ukraine, military officials reported. One of the drones that got through struck an energy infrastructure facility in the southern Odesa region, leaving 2,000 homes without power.

In the capital, hundreds of people gathered to oppose corruption and to demand the reallocation of public funds to the armed forces. The demonstration was the 10th in a series of protests in Kyiv amid anger over municipal projects.

On Saturday, protesters held Ukrainian flags and banners bearing slogans such as “We need drones not stadiums.”

“I've organized demonstrations in more than 100 cities protesting against corruption in Ukraine and for more money, which should go to the army," Maria Barbash, an activist with the organization Money for the Armed Forces, said. "The first priority of our budget — local budgets and the central budget — should be the army.”

___

Follow AP's coverage of the war in Ukraine at https://apnews.com/hub/russia-ukraine

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in