This is the moment when a Russian soldier held two grenades in the air while walking among Ukrainians, insisting on surrendering.
Footage taken in Konotop shows a Russian serviceman holding something like two grenades over his head as he walks through a crowd of angry Ukrainian citizens shouting “shame”.
Others told Muscovites, “Don’t walk around showing your grenade,” while others bumped into the soldier, as if ignoring the danger of grenades.
The soldier was in the city, on the southern coast of Ukraine, to negotiate a Ukrainian capitulation with the residents after he surrounded the city.
It is reported that he talked to the mayor of Konotop Artem Semenikhin and issued an ultimatum – capitulation or battle.
Semenikhin, speaking from the city center after the Russian troops left, could be heard asking residents what option they wanted, to which Ukrainians replied: “Fight, of course.”
That comes when Russian forces captured their first major city in Ukraine on Thursday morning with Kherson, the regional capital of the Black Sea with a population of 300,000, now under Putin’s control.
Russian troops surrounded the major cities of Chernihiv in the northwest and Mariupol in the south, as well as Kyiv and Kharkiv, Ukraine’s two largest cities – although all remained under Ukrainian control until Thursday morning.
This is the moment when a Russian soldier held two grenades in the air while walking among Ukrainians in the city of Konotop, insisting that they surrender.
Footage taken in Konotop shows a Russian commander claiming to be holding two grenades over his head as he passed through a crowd of angry Ukrainian citizens. The soldier reportedly was in the city, on the southern coast of Ukraine, to negotiate a Ukrainian capitulation with residents after encircling the city when the Russian invasion entered its eighth day.
Konotop Mayor Artem Semenikhin spoke to residents after Russian forces left the city center, asking if they wanted to surrender or fight.
In an exciting speech, Semenikhin said: “They gave us an ultimatum – if we start resisting, they will smash the city to pieces with artillery. You say yes, then we will fight. Who is for battle?
“I’m for the fight! Listen, we have to make the decision all together, because the artillery is already aimed at us.
You can hear the crowd say to Semenikhin, “Fight, of course.”
Konotop Mayor Artem Semenikhin talks to residents after Russian forces left the city center. He could be heard asking residents if they wanted to surrender or fight, to which Ukrainians replied: “Fight, of course.”
A force of about a dozen Russian ships, including landing craft, is gathering off the coast of Crimea today, with experts saying an attack on Odessa could take place later in the day.
Russian tanks and a military truck moved through the streets of Kherson on Wednesday
During the night, Russian forces captured Kherson. Igor Kolikhaev, the city’s mayor, said in an update around 1 a.m. that “armed visitors” had stormed a council meeting and imposed new rules, including a strict curfew, and called on citizens to abide by them.
But it was far from clear whether Ukrainian forces had withdrawn completely, with the UK Ministry of Defense saying on Thursday that the situation was “unclear”.
After failing to quickly seize major cities and subdue the Ukrainian army, US officials have said for days that they believe Russia will instead seek to encircle cities by cutting off supplies and escape routes.
Intelligence suggests that Vladimir Putin’s men will then attack cities with combined armored forces, ground forces and engineers.
Kyiv and Kharkiv, Ukraine’s two largest cities, remained under heavy bombardment overnight with missiles hitting civilian areas.
Among the targets was a station in the Ukrainian capital, used to evacuate people from the city and as a shelter for those who cannot or have chosen not to leave.
Chernigov in the northwest and Mariupol in the south also remain under Ukrainian control, although they are almost surrounded by Russian forces and subjected to heavy bombing.
The mayor of Mariupol said on Wednesday night that Russian artillery had devastated large parts of the city in what constituted “genocide”.
The city of Kherson can be seen on Wednesday, as Russian forces appear to be in control. Kherson was the first major city to fall to the Russians
A woman cries in the small basement of a house crowded with people seeking shelter from Russian air strikes outside the capital Kyiv on Wednesday
Photo shows damage to the entrance to the building after shelling of Constitution Square in Kharkov by Russian forces
A damaged bridge is clearly visible next to bombed-out homes in Chernihiv on Monday, 80 miles northeast of Kyiv.
An armed man stands next to the remains of a Russian military car in Bucha, near the capital Kyiv, Ukraine