Kathrine Frich
A grim scene is unfolding far from the headlines on the frontlines in Ukraine.
Cut off by floodwaters and fierce resistance, Russian troops are now stranded in no man’s land. They are fighting not just the enemy, but hunger itself.
Death on the river
Thousands of Russian soldiers are reportedly trapped and starving on small islands in the Dnipro River after being cut off from the rest of their units, according to LA.
Up to 5,000 troops are believed to have died in this swampy stretch south of Kherson.
Since Ukraine retook the city in November 2022, the river has become a new dividing line.
The higher right bank is under Ukrainian control, and the lower, flooded left bank is still held by Russian forces.
Cut off and exposed
The area has turned into one of the most dangerous fronts of the war, with constant drone flights, artillery duels, and night raids.
From fortified positions on the higher ground, Ukrainian troops target the stranded Russians below, launching drone and artillery strikes on the exposed river islands.
The soldiers have nowhere to hide and are being systematically destroyed in Ukrainian attacks.
Ukraine’s intelligence service estimates that 5,100 Russian troops have died since January, with many more reportedly starving due to the collapse of supply lines.
“No place to hide”
“This area is a Russian death zone,” Colonel Oleksandr Zavtonov of Ukraine’s 30th Marine Corps told The Telegraph. “There is no place to hide.”
He said captured Russian soldiers had described desperate conditions on the islands. “They told us they can’t get food or drinking water,” he added. “They have to drink water from the river.”
Desperate to survive
Dressed in makeshift camouflage made of reeds and mud, the stranded troops try to crawl through shallow water, hoping to slip back into Russian-held territory.
But Ukrainian soldiers are watching their every move. Using drones and night-vision equipment, they track each attempt to flee across the marshes.
Oksana Kuzana, head of the analytical division at Ukraine’s Center for Security and Cooperation, said the isolated Russian units face “serious problems with food, ammunition, and troop rotation.”
This article is made and published by Kathrine Frich, which may have used AI in the preparation
