Ukraine war: Putin endorses evacuations from occupied Kherson

Russian President Vladimir Putin has publically approved the evacuation of civilians from parts of Russian-occupied Kherson successful confederate Ukraine.

Kyiv's forces person been steadily advancing connected the strategical larboard city.

Mr Putin said radical surviving successful unsafe areas should permission arsenic "the civilian colonisation should not suffer".

At slightest 70,000 radical are reported to person been moved already from Kherson - the lone large metropolis gained by Moscow since its troops invaded successful February.

Civilians astatine hazard from shelling and attacks should beryllium "removed", Mr Putin said, during the Unity Day vacation successful Moscow's Red Square.

Kyiv accuses Russia of forcibly deporting Ukrainian civilians - which is considered a warfare transgression - though Moscow denies this.

Russia's intensive rocket and drone strikes connected civilian infrastructure crossed Ukraine person caused dense casualties and damage, and forced Kyiv to enforce predominant energy blackouts.

Mr Putin's comments followed reports connected Thursday that Russian soldiers, too, had been leaving Kherson - successful what would people a large withdrawal.

A Kremlin-installed authoritative successful the region, Kirill Stremousov, told Russian media that Moscow was "likely" to propulsion its troops from the area.

Ukrainian officials remained cautious, informing that the reported determination could beryllium a trap to lure their soldiers into unsafe areas.

Kherson was captured soon aft Russia attacked its neighbour connected 24 February, but precocious Ukrainian forces person steadily recaptured territory connected the city's outskirts.

Civilians were archetypal urged to permission Kherson successful the mediate of past month, arsenic the Russian service switched the metropolis to antiaircraft mode.

Russia claims the Kherson portion and 3 different Ukrainian regions arsenic its ain territory, though it does not afloat power immoderate of them. It hastily arranged self-styled section "referendums" to warrant the assertion - a determination condemned internationally.

During Friday's code successful Red Square, Mr Putin besides said immoderate 318,000 subject recruits had signed up for work during a mobilisation, present implicit - exceeding his people of 300,000.

Of these, Mr Putin said 49,000 were already progressive successful progressive warring - a fig not independently verified by the BBC.

Meanwhile, a Russian backstage subject company, the Wagner Group, has opened its archetypal authoritative headquarters, successful St Petersburg.

Its fighters are reported to beryllium progressive successful the Russian run successful Ukraine, and it has recruited prisoners to combat there, successful speech for their sentences being commuted successful Russia.

Wagner soldiers person repeatedly been accused of quality rights violations, including successful Syria, Libya and different conflicts.

Mr Putin has present amended the Russian law connected calling up reservists to see men convicted of superior crimes who precocious near prison.

The alteration means that convicted murderers and cause dealers who person precocious been released could beryllium conscripted to combat successful Ukraine.

Former prisoners convicted of enactment crimes against children oregon coercion are inactive excluded from serving.

In his latest comments connected the war, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky attacked the "absolutely insane stubbornness of the owners of today's Russia".

He said his force was uninterested successful bid talks, but was alternatively sending "people to the nutrient grinder" - some mobilised troops and mercenary fighters.

Referring to the week's "fiercest fighting", Mr Zelensky singled retired the eastbound towns of Bakhmut and Soledar.