The Russian flag was taken down in Kherson – may be a trap

The Russian flag has been taken down from Kherson’s most important building.

The people are preparing for brutal street battles and now everyone is asking:

Does the missing flag signal Russian retreat or a trap?

Residents hold their breath after the Russian flag was taken down from Kherson’s central administrative building, where it has been since Russian forces took control of the city in February.

Although Russian flags fly over other buildings, several of the checkpoints manned by Russian soldiers are also empty, according to residents who New York Times spoken to.

This makes everyone ask the question: Have the Russian troops given up the city?

Partial retreat according to Russia

There has been no official explanation for the flag’s disappearance from the Russian side. But according to Kirill Stremousov, the Russian-appointed deputy head of the Kherson region, a Russian retreat across the Dnieper River has been set in motion.

“Most likely, our troops, our soldiers, will leave and go to the eastern bank,” he told Solovyov Live, a pro-Russian media outlet.

Kirill Stremousov.

Kherson is on the west bank of the Dnieper and in recent weeks civilians have been evacuated across the river to the Russian-controlled east bank and Stremousov again urged civilians to leave the city, saying they risked their lives if they chose to stay.

Ukraine suspects warmongering

But many wonder if the important symbolic removal of the flag is really about a Russian war ruse. Ukrainian authorities warn that the Russians are trying to lure Ukrainian troops into a trap. Kherson is important both strategically and not least symbolically for Moscow and therefore they expect that the battle for the city will be brutal.

– This may be to give the impression that the settlements are abandoned and that it is safe to enter them, while they prepare for street fighting, says Natalia Humeniuk spokesman for the Southern Army of Ukraine.

At the same time, the civilians are preparing for the brutal battles.

A witness the New York Times spoke to says he is happy that the flag has been taken down from the building, but at the same time he is worried that the city will descend into anarchy in the power vacuum that may arise.

As a result, many of the remaining residents have begun hoarding water, food, gasoline and firewood in preparation for what could be a protracted battle for the city.

He says that there is a calm before the storm in Kherson, but that it is only a matter of time before the bombs start falling.