No water, power or internet -- only euphoria in newly liberated Kherson - CNN International

Kherson, Ukraine CNN  — 

For months, residents of the Ukrainian metropolis of Kherson person been surviving nether brutal Russian occupation. But connected Friday, Ukrainian forces swept into the metropolis Friday and Russian troops retreated to the east.

The residents person nary water, nary net transportation and small power. But arsenic a CNN unit entered the metropolis connected Saturday, the temper was euphoric.

As the unit filmed unrecorded successful Kherson’s cardinal square, immoderate sang the nationalist anthem portion others shouted “Slava Ukrayini!” – glory to Ukraine, a patriotic greeting.

“We consciousness free, we are not slaves, we are Ukrainians,” nonmigratory Olga told CNN.

Back erstwhile Russian troops rolled successful astatine the opening of the war, this was a metropolis that tried to resist: radical were taken away, tortured, disappeared, residents said.

“We were terrified by [the] Russian army, we were terrified by soldiers that tin travel immoderate infinitesimal successful our house, successful our location – conscionable unfastened the door, similar they are surviving here, and steal, kidnap, torture,” Olga said.

But now, radical flock to the cardinal quadrate successful the recently liberated city, wrapped successful Ukrainian flags, singing and chanting “Freedom for Ukraine.”

On Friday, Russia announced it had withdrawn from the westbound slope of the Dnipro River successful the strategical confederate portion of Kherson, leaving the determination superior of the aforesaid sanction and surrounding areas to the Ukrainians.

The retreat represents a large stroke for Putin’s warfare effort successful Ukraine. Kherson was the lone Ukrainian determination superior that Russian forces had captured since February’s invasion. Their withdrawal eastbound crossed the Dnipro cedes ample swathes of onshore that Russia has occupied since the aboriginal days of the war, and that Putin had formally declared arsenic Russian territory conscionable 5 weeks ago.

On Friday evening, Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky posted a nighttime video of celebrations successful the city, wherever a assemblage was waving flags and chanting “ZSU,” the Ukrainian acronym for the equipped forces.

Earlier that day, the Ukrainian military’s confederate operational bid said Russian forces had been “urgently loading into boats that look suitable for crossing and trying to escape” crossed the river.

It was unclear whether each Russian troops had near Kherson and the wider region. Serhiy Khlan, a subordinate of Ukraine’s Kherson determination council, said the metropolis was “almost nether the power of the Armed Forces of Ukraine” but cautioned that immoderate Russian troops mightiness person remained down successful civilian clothing.

He warned that galore Russian troops “threw distant their subject uniforms, and are present hiding with civilian apparel on.”