British intelligence says Russia's pullout from Kherson began on Oct 22
The UK Defense Ministry said this in its latest intelligence update published on Twitter, Ukrinform reports.
On November 11, 2022, Russia's Ministry of Defense claimed their withdrawal from Kherson had been completed. Russian forces highly likely destroyed road and rail bridges over the Dnipro River as part of this process.
"The completion of the withdrawal came only two days after its announcement. It is likely that the withdrawal process had already started as early as 22 October 2022 when Russian-installed figures in Kherson urged civilians to leave the city," the ministry said.
There is a realistic possibility that Russian military equipment and forces in civilian attire had been evacuating in conjunction with the 80,000 stated evacuated civilians in recent weeks.
Kherson was the only regional capital city captured since February by Russian forces so the withdrawal brings significant reputational damage. The withdrawal is a public recognition of the difficulties faced by Russian forces on the west bank of the Dnipro River, UK intelligence said.
It is likely that Ukraine has retaken large areas of the Kherson region on the west bank of the Dnipro River, and that its forces are now largely in control of Kherson city itself, the ministry said.
