President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyi said on Friday that special units of the Ukrainian Armed Forces are already in the city of Kherson, and called the moment of Russia’s withdrawal historic. At the same time, Ukrainians continued to celebrate the exit of the Russians from Kherson until Friday night, as videos shared on social media showed street parties and chants of “ZSU”, the initials of the Ukrainian armed forces.

The first Ukrainian military entered the city of Kherson on Friday afternoon after more than 6 months of occupation, and the servicemen of the Armed Forces of Ukraine were greeted like statues.

From that moment, local residents erupted in joy and excitement in demonstrations that began dancing and continued into the night.

For an hour you can hear Ukrainians chirping, singing and playing by the fire. In the background, passing cars are honking.

“Historical Day”

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said that this was a “historic day” and that people in the southern city “never lost hope.”

“Today is a historic day. We return to Kherson. Currently, our defenders are near the city. But special forces are already in the city. The people of Kherson were waiting. They never gave up on Ukraine. Hope for Ukraine is always justified (…) And even when the city is not yet completely cleansed of the presence of the enemy, the people of Kherson are already removing Russian symbols and any traces of the occupiers from the streets and buildings. in Kherson,” said Zelenskyi.

Government warning to Ukrainians who want to return to Kherson

As Ukrainian troops tighten control over the western part of Kherson region, officials have warned residents not to try to return home too early.

“More and more settlements are returning to the Ukrainian flag,” Yaroslav Yanushevich, the head of the Kherson Regional Military Administration, said in the video.

“I understand that everyone is sad and sleepy to return home as soon as possible,” he continued, “I ask you to wait a little. It is very dangerous here now. There is a high probability that the enemy will bomb new unoccupied settlements. In addition, the territory should be examined by explosives experts. Unfortunately, there are already many victims among the civilian population from explosive devices.”

More than 30,000 Russian troops have retreated from the eastern bank of the Dnieper, The Guardian reports in a statement by the Russian Ministry of Defense published by the Interfax news agency. At the same time, the Antoniv bridge collapsed, probably destroyed by the Russians so that Ukrainians could not cross the Dnieper.

Also, a video from the Antonivsky Bridge was published by Oleksandr Kots, a military correspondent of “Komsomolska Pravda”.

“Probably, it was blown up during the retreat of the Russian group from the right bank to the left. It seems that the enemy from the other side has not yet approached this bridge,” says Kots.

The Main Directorate of Intelligence under the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine appealed to the Russian troops who remained in Kherson after the withdrawal of the Kremlin troops, with a call to surrender.

There are reports that during the withdrawal order, some soldiers remained. Some have changed into civilian clothes, but there are fears they may still be armed.

In a statement published on social networks, the special services of Ukraine said: “In case of voluntary capture, Ukraine guarantees your survival and safety. We adhere to the Geneva Conventions, guarantee prisoners of war food, medical care and the possibility of exchange with servicemen of the Armed Forces of Ukraine who are prisoners in the Russian Federation. It is safe to surrender, having previously discussed the conditions of surrender with authorized representatives of the Ukrainian command, by calling the telephone line of the State Project of Ukraine “I want to live”.