600 kilom\u00e8tres carr\u00e9s d’inondations : il y a des morts sur la rive gauche, les Russes ont bombard\u00e9 Kherson – 9 bless\u00e9s, les forces arm\u00e9es ukrainiennes lancent une contre-offensive.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
As of the morning of June 8, the average level of flooding after the blast at the Kakhovka hydroelectric power plant was 5.61 meters. About 600 square kilometers of Kherson region were under water, which is twice the size of the Maldives. Head of the Kherson regional military administration Oleksandr Prokudin said that 32 per cent of the flooded territory was on the Ukrainian-controlled right bank of the Dnipro River, and 68 per cent was on the Russian-held left bank. He said 1,999 people had left flooded territory as of 6 a.m. on Thursday, most of them \u2013 1,495, were evacuated from the Korabel district in Kherson. \u201cThe situation on the left bank is extremely difficult. People are suffering not only from flood waters, but also from Russian terror and lack of will by the occupying forces to help them,\u201d Prokudin said. The first deaths as a result of flooding from the destruction of the Kakhovka hydroelectric power plant were reported in Oleshky, on the Russian-held left bank of the river. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
As of Thursday morning, in Mykolayiv, water levels rose by almost one meter, the city\u2019s mayor Oleksandr Senkevych said. In some lower parts of the city, the shore line was being reinforced to protect nearby homes. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
The Kinburn Spit has turned into an island. The road that connected the spit to the mainland in the western part of Kherson region on the left bank of the Dnipro, was completely flooded, the Southern Forest Service said. It is no longer possible to get to the mainland by land.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Russian forces began to shell Kherson in the afternoon as people were being evacuated because of flooding caused by the blast at the Kakhovka hydroelectric power plant. Head of the Kherson regional military administration Oleksandr Prokudin said: \u201cThe strikes target coastal areas and the city center.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The Russians are \u201cjust terrorists,\u201d Head of the Office of the President of Ukraine Andriy Yermak said, as Russia shelled flood-hit Kherson. Nine people were wounded, including two rescue workers from the State Emergency Service of Ukraine, a policeman, a medic, and a German volunteer. One person was taken to the hospital\u2019s emergency department.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Ukraine on Thursday began its long-awaited counteroffensive against Russia, officials told ABC News.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Two Ukrainian officials, including a source close to President Volodymyr Zelenskyi, confirmed to ABC News that an active phase of the Ukrainian counteroffensive is underway.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Well-trained Ukrainian troops had been gathering at strategic locations near the front lines in recent days, Western officials said last week.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Ukraine\u2019s troops intensified their attacks on the front line in the country\u2019s southeast, according to four individuals in the country\u2019s armed forces who spoke on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to publicly discuss the battlefield developments, the Washington Post said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The Ukrainian troops include specialized attack units armed with Western weapons and trained in NATO tactics. The attacks in the country\u2019s southeast mark a significant push into Russian-occupied territory.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
By cutting south through the Zaporizhzhia region\u2019s flat fields, Kyiv\u2019s forces could aim to sever the \u201cland bridge\u201d between mainland Russia and occupied Crimea, cutting off crucial Russian supply lines.<\/p>\n\n\n\n