Russian forces disperse pro-Ukraine rally in occupied Kherson

Russian forces used tear gas and stun grenades to disperse a pro-Ukraine rally in the occupied city of Kherson on Wednesday, Ukraine's Prosecutor General said, as Moscow tightened its grip over the southern region.

Local authorities say Russia appointed its own mayor of Kherson on Tuesday after its troops took over the administration headquarters in the regional capital, which was the first big urban center to be seized after the Feb. 24 invasion.

Some residents have staged occasional anti-occupation rallies and crowds gathered in the center again on Wednesday, the date Kyiv had said Russia planned to stage a referendum to create a breakaway region like those in eastern Ukraine.

"During a peaceful pro-Ukrainian rally on Freedom Square in the city of Kherson, servicemen of the Russian armed forces used tear gas and stun grenades against the civilian population," the office of Ukraine's Prosecutor General said in a statement.

It said it was investigating the incident, and that at least four people were wounded.

Russia did not immediately comment on the incident.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy praised the protests, saying in a late night address that "I am grateful to everyone who has not given up, who is protesting, who is ignoring the occupiers and showing the marginal people who have become collaborators that there is no future for them".

Shortly afterwards, RIA news agency cited a security source as saying Ukraine had fired three rockets at the city center but Russian occupying forces shot down two of them. read more

On Tuesday, Russia said it had gained full control of the Kherson region, which is strategically important as it provides part of the land link between the annexed Crimea peninsula and Russian-backed separatist areas in the east. read more

Russia calls its actions in Ukraine a "special operation" to disarm its neighbor and protect it from fascists. Ukraine and the West say the fascist allegation is baseless and that the war is an unprovoked act of aggression. —Reuters