Ukraine war: Tears of relief and joy in Kherson as oppressed Ukrainians cling to their liberators

Published

2 years ago

November 12, 2022

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With the magnitude of the moment still sinking in, a girl in a red coat ignores several cars and runs through traffic to throw her arms around a Ukrainian soldier.

It is a scene of celebration that is being repeated across Kherson, now liberated from Russian control.

Everyone in a uniform is being given a hero’s welcome – liberation clearly feels good and they are holding on to it tight.

This plays out as Ukraine‘s national anthem banned under Russian occupation blares across the central square.

‘Panic’ emerging in Russian ranks – Ukraine war latest

A woman, who tells me her name is Babushka Alla, is overjoyed – and wants to thank the armed forces.

“We are so happy that our strong men returned to us and liberated us from the occupiers!”

The people here have lived under nine months of terrifying occupation.

With this in mind, it is easy to understand why they are weeping tears of relief and joy and clinging to their liberators.

I meet Natalia, who’s holding back the tears.

“We knew only fear. We were afraid of everything. We were afraid of the sounds of cars, we were afraid of using telephones, we were hiding everything, we were hiding our kids!”

The celebrations are infectious. People dance and throw their arms in the air.

Everyone waves a flag and some even surf around the city on the top of cars shouting, “Glory to Ukraine, Glory to the heroes”.

Many here feared this time would never come.

And now they are cherishing it. It’s a rare moment of good news in a war that has caused so much pain.

And it is perhaps a reflection of the strength of the residents who carried on as a kind of normal.

Some shops are open and there are some cars on the street. But the smashed-up buildings and the dark secrets they contain are hard to forget.

Members of Russia’s internal security the FSB were based in a hotel in the centre of the city before it was hit by a Ukrainian artillery strike.

From there they enforced Moscow’s rule of oppression.

Olga, who arrived outside the building, is demanding justice. She says many people in the city simply disappeared.

“They went for water – and they were gone! They went to the market – gone! They went for medicines – gone! A lot of people have disappeared”.

Surviving under occupation was a life lived in fear. And although freedom is a powerful currency, basic services remain cut.

There’s no power and there are queues everywhere for water. People waiting patiently in line holding empty plastic bottles.

The Russians spent their time here talking of a new motherland. The posters for the sham referendum still hang heavy over the city.

But Vladimir Putin’s illegal annexation and his claim Kherson is Russia’s forever means nothing when the people here have a different idea of who they want to be.

And that is obvious as most of the city’s population are draped in a Ukrainian flag, or are holding one.

The truth is Moscow’s forces built nothing and they destroyed much. The TV tower is a twisted skeleton of scorched metal.

The Russians blew it up as they left, cutting the telephone and the internet, a goodbye gift from a humiliated and defeated army.

The Russians may have retreated but they haven’t gone far.

They’re now just 2km away on the eastern bank of the Dnipro River – smoke billows on the horizon as explosions are heard in the distance.

It’s a sobering reminder that this war is far from over.

For now though for the people it’s all about reconnecting with the outside world.

Back in the central square soldiers have set up satellite internet so people can tell their loved ones they are OK.

Staring at their phones everyone tries to catch enough signal to get a message out. But amid this jubilation and relief, there are moments of reflection.

In fluent English, Andrii describes to me what the last nine months have been like.

“Feels like freedom at last. Feels like victory is coming here. From the very first day, I knew it was coming. You have to have something which you live for and this was the moment to live for. Great day. Liberation is not something happening every year. It’s something once in every five generations. It’s a moment to stay.”

There’s anger here too at what Russia has done to Ukraine.

As we leave the centre of the city we see a group of young people tearing down posters put up by the Russian invaders.

And with the Kremlin’s forces in retreat here they start to chant loudly, willing their military to free the rest of the country.

World

What does Sudan execution video tell us?

Published

3 hours ago

April 15, 2025

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What does Sudan execution video tell us?

On 11 April, the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) and its affiliates attacked Zamzam camp in North Darfur.

The RSF is a paramilitary organisation comprised of militias that used to be be aligned with Sudan’s government.

For exactly two years it has been been locked in a civil war with the government’s Sudan Armed Forces (SAF). Both sides have been accused of human rights abuses over the course of the conflict.

After the capture of Zamzam, the RSF claimed in a statement released on Telegram that the camp was being used as a barracks, accusing the SAF of using civilians as “human shields”.

It further claimed, “the Rapid Support Forces were able to secure civilians during the liberation operation and prevent them from being harmed”.

Satellite imagery and footage from the ground paints a darker picture, showing the execution of an unarmed man and widespread fires within the camp at the time of its capture.

Zamzam sits just to the south of Al Fashir, North Darfur’s capital city, which has been a key target of the RSF in recent months.

Filming of an execution

Shortly after the RSF attack began on 11 April, a video began circulating on social media. It shows a group of gunmen standing over two unarmed men and a child.

One of the men squats in front of a gunman holding an assault rifle. The gunman shoots him at close range, killing him.

The child, less than a meter away, lies face down with his hands covering the back of his head.

While the footage does not contain much contextual information, the person filming turns the camera to his face before showing a close-up view of the dead body behind him.

Sky News has geolocated a second video showing the same man, wearing the same clothing and equipment, at another location within the camp at the time of its capture.

The footage shows the fighter with a group of gunmen celebrating as they enter a compound in the south of the camp.

Gunfire can be heard, and smoke rises from nearby as the group cheer.

At one point, a uniformed fighter wearing an RSF patch can be seen, confirming that at least this individual is affiliated with the organisation.

Both videos appear to have been filmed within a short timeframe.

The fighter seen in both videos is wearing the same head covering, clothing and tactical gear. The pattern on his head covering is oriented identically in both, suggesting it has not been removed in the time between filming.

Widespread fires

Available footage and satellite images show the RSF’s capture of Zamzam was closely followed by fires being lit across the camp.

In one video, a man in an RSF uniform can be seen driving on the camp’s main road while thick smoke rises from nearby fires.

Data from FIRMS, a NASA project that uses satellite data to detect thermal anomalies, provides a wider view.

Following the arrival of the RSF on 11 April, fires were detected across the south and east of the camp.

More fires were detected in the east and south on 12 April, with areas in the north of the camp being affected on the 13 April.

Satellite images form Maxar confirm buildings burned across the south of the camp on April 11, close to where fighters were seen.

On Tuesday, the African Union and European government’s including the UK called for an immediate cessation of the hostilities in which tens of thousands of people have been killed in the last two years.

The Data and Forensics team is a multi-skilled unit dedicated to providing transparent journalism from Sky News. We gather, analyse and visualise data to tell data-driven stories. We combine traditional reporting skills with advanced analysis of satellite images, social media and other open-source information. Through multimedia storytelling we aim to better explain the world while also showing how our journalism is done.

World

Ukrainian forces ‘strike Russian brigade’ behind deadly missile attack on Sumy

Published

3 hours ago

April 15, 2025

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Ukrainian forces 'strike Russian brigade' behind deadly missile attack on Sumy

Ukraine’s military says it has struck the base of the Russian missile brigade behind Sunday’s devastating attack on Sumy.

A Russian assault on the city killed 35 people and injured at least 119. Children were among the dead and wounded.

The Ukrainian military has now said it has struck a base of “the 448th missile brigade of the Russian occupiers”.

In a statement on messaging app Telegram, it said the base was “hit [and] a secondary detonation of ammunition was recorded”.

“The results of the strike are being clarified,” it added.

Volodymyr Zelenskyy previously shared videos of the aftermath of Russia’s Palm Sunday attack, showing dead bodies in the middle of a street in Sumy.

The Ukrainian president said “only scoundrels can act like this” and called for “tough reaction from the world” in posts on social media.

Meanwhile, Ukraine‘s foreign ministry said one of the children injured was a baby girl born this year, adding “even newborns are targets for Russia’s crimes”.

NATO on Tuesday reaffirmed its “unwavering” support for Ukraine as the alliance’s secretary-general visited the country.

As he met with Mr Zelenskyy at a hospital in Odesa, Mark Rutte said: “I’m here today because I believe Ukraine’s people deserve real peace, real safety and security in their country, in their homes.”

Mr Rutte also said he and Mr Zelenskyy had discussed the Trump administration’s peace talks with both Russia and Ukraine.

“These discussions are not easy – not least in the wake of this horrific violence – but we all support President Trump’s push for peace,” he said.

His comment came after Mr Trump accused Ukraine of starting the war with Russia.

Rebutting this, Mr Rutte added: “Russia is the aggressor, Russia started this war. There’s no doubt.”

It also follows Russian and Ukrainian diplomats accusing each other of violating a tentative US-brokered deal to pause strikes on energy infrastructure.

“The Ukrainians have been attacking us from the very beginning, every passing day, maybe with two or three exceptions,” Sergey Lavrov, Russia’s foreign minister, said, adding that Moscow would provide a list of Kyiv’s attacks from the past three weeks.

Andrii Sybiha, his Ukrainian counterpart, dismissed the claim saying on Saturday that Russia launched “almost 70 missiles, over 2,200 [exploding] drones, and over 6,000 guided aerial bombs at Ukraine, mostly at civilians” since agreeing to the limited pause on strikes.

World

Prisons across France attacked ‘in response to crackdown on drug trafficking’

Published

9 hours ago

April 15, 2025

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Prisons across France attacked 'in response to crackdown on drug trafficking'

Several French prisons were attacked overnight in response to government efforts to clamp down on drug trafficking in the country, senior officials said.

Unknown assailants fired automatic weapons at a prison in the southern city of Toulon, while vehicles were burned outside other facilities across the country and staff were threatened.

France’s national anti-terrorism prosecutor’s office said on Tuesday that it had taken charge of the investigation, while the country’s DGSI national security investigation will also be involved.

French media reported that the prisons targeted were in or near cities including Toulon, Aix-En-Provence, Marseille, and the communes of Valence and Nimes.

Prisons were also targeted in the commune of Villepinte and the suburb of Nanterre near Paris, according to reports.

It is not immediately clear whether the attacks were co-ordinated, or who carried them out.

France’s Justice Minister Gerald Darmanin, who has led efforts to toughen prison security and crack down on gangsters who run their empires from behind bars, said he would travel to Toulon.

“Attempts have been made to intimidate staff in several prisons, ranging from burning vehicles to firing automatic weapons,” Mr Darmanin wrote on X.

“I am going to Toulon to support the officers concerned. The French Republic is facing up to the problem of drug trafficking and is taking measures that will massively disrupt the criminal networks.”

Meanwhile, the country’s Interior Minister Bruno Retailleau said he had instructed local prefects, alongside the police and gendarmerie, to immediately step up the protection of staff and prisons.

A ‘white tsunami’ of cocaine

Years of record South American cocaine imports to Europe have supercharged local drug markets, sparking a wave of drug violence across the continent.

Gangs in France have been able to expand from traditional power bases in cities like Marseille into smaller regional towns unaccustomed to drug violence.

The rise in gang crime is thought to have led to increased support for the far-right National Rally party and have helped drag French politics rightward.

Mr Darmanin, a former interior minister, and Mr Retailleau have prioritised tackling drug trafficking.

In February, Mr Retailleau announced record cocaine seizures of 47 tonnes in the first 11 months of 2024 compared to 23 tonnes in all of 2023.

Mr Retailleau said France had been hit by a “white tsunami” that had rewritten the rules of the criminal landscape.

Meanwhile, Mr Darmanin has proposed a series of measures to tighten prison security, including isolating the country’s top 100 kingpins.

Lawmakers are also close to approving a sweeping new anti-drug trafficking law that would create a new national organised crime prosecutors’ office and give greater investigative power to police investigating drug gangs.

French authorities scored a win against drug crime in February, when they recaptured Mohamed Amra, a French fugitive known as “The Fly.”

His escape as he was being transported from prison to a court hearing resulted in the deaths of two prison guards and was seized upon by right-wing politicians as evidence that France had lost its grip on drug crime.