Russian Troops Trying To Storm Key Island After Losing It to Ukraine: Kyiv

Russian troops are attempting to storm a key island after losing it to Ukraine just weeks ago, according to an official.

Moscow's forces have recently launched repeated assaults to recapture the tactically important Nestryha Island, Captain Dmytro Pletenchuk, spokesperson for the Southern Operational Command of Ukraine's Armed Forces, told a Ukrainian broadcaster on Thursday.

Newsweek has contacted the Russian Ministry of Defense via email for comment.

The Context

Nestryha Island is located some 12 miles southwest of the Ukrainian city of Kherson, which Ukraine liberated along with the west (right) bank of the Dnieper River toward the end of 2022. Kyiv's forces had regained control of the island from Russian troops in late April.

Ukraine has since been launching regular raids across the Dnieper, and reached theoccupied side of the river in mid-October 2023 after extensive cross-river operations.

What We Know

Pletenchuk said Thursday that Nestryha Island holds tactical significance because it prevents Russian troops from approaching Ukrainian positions.

After a long pause, Moscow has begun to accumulate its forces in an attempt to storm the island, he said.

"The enemy has been accumulating certain forces for some time in order to carry out such an escalation again. Therefore, yesterday we had 19 attempted assaults, which is quite a lot," he said.

He spoke to Hromadske Radio when Ukraine regained control of the island on April 28.

"Considering that the enemy usually uses similar locations—there are actually many such islands on the [Dnieper] River—to approach closer and to install mortar, then this is primarily important for the quality of counter-sabotage measures," Pletenchuk said. "So yes, this location was liberated from the potential presence of the enemy."

This is a breaking news story and will be updated.

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