November 6, 2022 Russia-Ukraine news

By Matt Meyer and Maureen Chowdhury, CNN

Updated 0325 GMT (1125 HKT) November 7, 2022
5 Posts
Sort byDropdown arrow
12:18 p.m. ET, November 6, 2022

Russia is faking withdrawal from Kherson to lure Kyiv's forces into a fight, Ukrainian military official says

From CNN's Mariya Knight 

A Ukrainian artillery battery attached to the 59th Mechanized Brigade, fires towards Russian forces in Kherson Oblast on Saturday.
A Ukrainian artillery battery attached to the 59th Mechanized Brigade, fires towards Russian forces in Kherson Oblast on Saturday. (Metin Aktas/Anadolu Agency/Getty Images)

Russians are creating the illusion of retreat from Kherson to lure Ukrainian forces into street fighting in the key southern city, Natalia Humeniuk, a spokeswoman for Ukraine’s military, said Saturday. 

“Russian troops are trying hard to convince everyone they are retreating but at the same time we are seeing objective evidence that they are staying,” Humeniuk said in an interview with Ukrainian media.

“There are military units that were based there, and a lot of military equipment is stationed there, and their battle positions are set there as well. The battle positions that were set on the left bank will be used for the support of the battle positions on the right bank.” 

CNN has not independently verified Humeniuk’s claims.

“We understand that Russians are trying to create an illusion of not being there in order to lure Ukrainian forces into the nearby settlements, and the settlements are usually where tough street fighting takes place,” she said.

“This is why we know, we see and we foresee what kind of narrative they are trying to feed us, and we are building up our own strategy accordingly,” Humeniuk noted.  

According to Humeniuk, Russians are moving their elite units and officers to the left bank of Dnieper River, leaving the ones on the right bank no way to escape or evacuate. “They are leaving the units on the right bank to fight until their last breath,” she said. 

Some background: It's been difficult to determine the exact situation on the ground in Kherson this week.

A senior Moscow-appointed official remarked Thursday that Russian troops would "most likely" fall back from positions in the southern city. Ukrainian officials have suggested from the start that the statement could be a trap.

Russia has been evacuating citizens from the city. Moscow portrays the move as vital for public safety. Kyiv has likened the evacuations to forced relocation.

Last month, a resident described the situation in Kherson as tense, with people “emotionally exhausted,” the streets empty from mid-afternoon onwards and Russian soldiers often seen in civilian clothes.

12:05 p.m. ET, November 6, 2022

Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant is reconnected to Ukraine’s power grid, UN watchdog says

From CNN's Mariya Knight

Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant outside Enerhodar, in the Zaporizhzhia region, on October 14.
Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant outside Enerhodar, in the Zaporizhzhia region, on October 14. (Alexander Ermochenko/Reuters/FILE)

External power has been restored to Ukraine’s Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant two days after it lost all access to off-site electricity due to shelling, the head of the United Nations' nuclear watchdog said Saturday.

In a statement, International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Director General Rafael Grossi reported "both external power lines used for electricity supplies from the grid were repaired, and reconnection started on Friday afternoon."

“Power supply to all six units of the Zaporizhzhia NPP had been re-established, and the eight operating emergency diesel generators turned off and put into standby mode,” Grossi said, citing information he had received from the team of IAEA experts present at the plant. 

Some background: The Zaporizhzhia NPP has lost external power several times since the start of the conflict in Ukraine in February, forcing it to rely on diesel generators until off-site electricity became available again.

The UN nuclear watchdog chief said Saturday that “the repeated power outages all too clearly demonstrate the extremely serious nuclear safety and security situation this major nuclear power plant is facing.”

He acknowledged that “so far, the brave staff of the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant have always managed to maintain the safe operation of the six units.”  

“But it can’t go on like this,” he emphasized. “I have repeatedly called for the urgent establishment of a nuclear safety and security protection zone around the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant to prevent a nuclear accident. We can’t afford to lose any more time. We must act before it is too late.” 
9:39 a.m. ET, November 6, 2022

DPR judge "in serious condition" after alleged assassination attempt, pro-Russia separatists say

From CNN's Uliana Pavlova

A Russia-appointed judge in the self-proclaimed Donetsk People’s Republic (DPR) has been hospitalized in “serious condition” after getting shot in an alleged assassination attempt Friday, according to the separatist group’s Ministry of Internal Affairs. 

“Doctors are fighting for his life,” the ministry said in a statement. 

The judge, Alexander Nikulin, worked in a self-proclaimed Supreme Court of DPR and sentenced three foreign fighters in June: Aiden Aslin, Shaun Pinner and Brahim Saadoun. The trio have since been released in a prisoner swap. 

The separatist group said it is working on identifying suspects, but blamed Ukraine for the alleged assassination attempt. 

"The Ukrainian regime continues to display its dastardly terrorist methods. Last night, November 4, an assassination attempt was made with the use of firearms on the judge of the Supreme Court of the DPR Alexander Nikulin in Uglegorsk,” the leader of the self-proclaimed republic, Denis Pushilin, said on Telegram.

8:29 a.m. ET, November 6, 2022

Zelensky says Iran is lying about the extent of its drone supply to Russia

From CNN's Mariya Knight

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky speaks during his evening video message on Saturday Nov. 5.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky speaks during his evening video message on Saturday Nov. 5. (Office of President of Ukraine)

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky called Iran's claim about sending a "limited" number of drones to Russia a lie in his nightly address Saturday.

He also disputed the timeline presented by Tehran.

“Today there were messages from Iran, from official representatives. There they decided to admit that they did supply drones for Russian terror. But even in this confession, they lied,” Zelensky said. “We shoot down at least 10 Iranian drones every day, and the Iranian regime claims that it allegedly gave little — and even before the start of the full-scale invasion.” 

Zelensky said that if “Iran continues lying about the obvious,” even more efforts will be made to investigate “the terrorist cooperation between the Russian and Iranian regimes and what Russia is paying Iran for such cooperation.” 

What Iran said: Iran’s Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian said during a press conference Saturday that Tehran had provided a limited number of the weapons before Russia invaded Ukraine.

“Some Western countries have accused Iran of helping the war in Ukraine by providing drones and missiles to Russia," Amirabdollahian said. "The part regarding missiles is completely wrong. The part about drones is correct, we did provide a limited number of drones to Russia in the months before the start of the war in Ukraine.” 

8:29 a.m. ET, November 6, 2022

This map shows the latest state of control in Ukraine

The map below reflects the current front lines in Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

Earlier this week, a Ukrainian military official said some of the fiercest battles in the conflict are taking place in the eastern Luhansk region, especially in the Svatove-Kreminna area, north of Russian-occupied Severodonetsk.