a 58-hour curfew imposed in Kherson, near the frontline

Will the Ukrainian offensive soon begin? The Ukrainian authorities announced on Wednesday May 3 the establishment of a 58-hour curfew in Kherson, near the front line in the south of the country. “From 8 p.m. [heure locale] on May 5, a curfew will be put in place in Kherson and it will last until 6 a.m. on May 8,” the head of the local military administration, Oleksandr Prokudin, said on Telegram.

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“During these 58 hours, it will be forbidden to move and be on the streets of the city. Kherson will also be closed on entry and exit,” he added. Oleksandr Prokudin justified “these temporary restrictions” by “the necessity” For “the forces of order to be able to do their job”without giving further details.

Rumors of a major Ukrainian offensive

This announcement by the authorities, however, comes at a time when kyiv assures that its preparations for a vast offensive to reconquer the territories occupied by Russia in the east and in the south “are coming to an end”.

Russia still occupies nearly 20% of Ukraine, including the Crimean peninsula, annexed in 2014. Kherson, for its part, was liberated last November following a successful counter-offensive by Kiev in the region. Since then, this city has been regularly bombarded, the Russian army being just on the other side of the Dnieper, a river which now acts as a natural front line.