Under the guise of an evacuation, Russia deployed troops to Oleshky

The British television channel Sky News has released a video showing Russian troops bringing in heavy equipment and ammunition and rotating personnel in the occupied town of Oleshky in the Kherson region during a ceasefire.

Journalists were granted exclusive access to the command post of Ukraine’s 34th Marine Brigade, from where Ukrainian troops monitored the movements of Russian forces during the so-called humanitarian pause.

Footage released shows armored vehicles on the streets of Oleshky. It also captures Russian soldiers carrying large backpacks as they enter buildings and structures with basements.

According to Ukrainian military officials, these actions had nothing to do with a humanitarian mission. Sky News journalists are raising the question of whether Russia used the evacuation of civilians to achieve other military objectives.

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Azad Safarov, the network’s producer in Ukraine, explained that they could not release the video earlier until the evacuated residents of Oleshky had reached territory controlled by Ukraine. Now, he said, the network is showing how Russia used the so-called humanitarian corridor for its own military purposes.

Earlier, the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine reported that Russian troops had taken advantage of the humanitarian pause to fortify their positions. Ukrainian military personnel observed the rotation of Russian units, the fortification of positions, the expansion of anti-drone measures along roads, and the buildup of logistics, particularly the delivery of ammunition.

Prior to this, military officials and analysts had also warned of possible preparations by the Russian army for a new offensive in the Kherson direction.

Андрій Колісніченко