Kyiv launches counteroffensive in the south, 'flee for your lives', Zelensky tells Russians

Ukraine's presidency said Tuesday that there is "heavy fighting" in "almost the entire territory" of the southern Ukrainian region of Kherson occupied by Russian troops. Earlier,Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky asked Russian troops to flee for their lives as his forces launched an offensive near the city of Kherson, saying Ukraine's military were taking back their territory. However, Russia has said that the assault had failed. In a late night address Monday, Zelensky vowed that Ukrainian troops would chase the Russian army "to the border".

"If they want to survive, it's time for the Russian military to run away. Go home. Ukraine is taking back its own," Zelensky said.

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"Powerful explosions continued throughout the day and throughout the night in Kherson region," the president's office said in a morning update.

Oleksiy Arestovych, Zelensky's senior adviser, said that the offensive in the Kherson region has led to the Russian defences being "broken through in a few hours". He further informed that Ukrainian forces were shelling ferries that Russia was using to supply a pocket of territory on the west bank of the Dnipro river.

Britain has also said that Ukrainian forces have increased "artillery fire in front line sectors across southern Ukraine" and their "long-range precision strikes" were disrupting Russian resupplies.

Ukraine's Suspilne public broadcaster reported explosions in the Kherson area on Tuesday. Residents of the area shared social media posts informing of gunfire and explosions but said it was not clear who was firing.

Meanwhile, Russia's defence ministry said Ukrainian troops had attempted an offensive in the Mykolaiv and Kherson regions but sustained significant casualties, RIA news agency reported. The "enemy's offensive attempt failed miserably", it said.

(With inputs from agencies)