Russian President Vladimir Putin has more than 5,000 troops starving to death on an island in the Dnipro River. His troops are unable to access supply and have little to no cover from drone attacks
Vladimir Putin’s dedicated soldiers have been left to starve to death after they became stranded on a deadly island, according to officials in Ukraine.
Thousands of troops have been cut off from other Russian forces, with Ukraine claiming that 5,000 troops are trapped in the ‘death zone’ in the Dnipro River. The deserted area, which is located in the south of Kherson, has been used as a frontline since November 2022.
The right of the river bank is operated by Ukraine, while the left remains under Russian control. Putin’s troops are often targeted by the opposition as there are little options to ‘hide’ during a drone attack.
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According to Ukranian officials, around 5,100 Russians have died on the island since January, with troops left with little access to supplies. Shocking footage from the island shows Putin’s men covering themselves in vegetation as they tried to hide from drone strikes.
In one clip, a group of soldiers crammed into a tiny dinghie in a bid to dodge the blasts. Colonel Oleksandr Zavtonov, based with Ukraine’s 30th Marine Corps, told The Telegraph: “The area is a death zone for Russia. There is nowhere to hide.
“The prisoners that our fighters recently took on the islands talked about the inability to deliver food and drinking water to them. They have to drink water from the river.”
Oksana Kuzan, head of the analytical department at the Ukrainian Security and Cooperation Centre, stressed that troops are struggling due to the conditions. He warned: “Russian military units remaining on the islands in the Dnipro delta are facing serious problems with food, ammunition, and rotations.”
The latest update comes after Zelensky said he was encouraged by the US-brokered ceasefire aimed at ending the war in Gaza and urged Donald Trump to put similar pressure on Russia. “I hope he will use all the instruments: Tomahawks, sanctions, the diplomatic way, the financial way, tariffs, everything to stop Putin,” he said.
The leaders of Ukraine, the UK, Germany, France, Italy, Poland, Norway, Finland, Denmark, the European Commission and European Council, recently called for peace and said: “We are all united in our desire for a just and lasting peace, deserved by the people of Ukraine.
“We strongly support President Trump’s position that the fighting should stop immediately, and that the current line of contact should be the starting point of negotiations. We remain committed to the principle that international borders must not be changed by force.”