Russian forces 'probably' threatening to shoot retreating troops, UK defence ministry says

Russian forces may be threatening to shoot their own retreating troops, the British Ministry of Defence has said.

The Russian forces could have deployed "barrier troops" or "blocking units" to stop soldiers withdrawing, the government's latest Defence Intelligence update on the situation in Ukraine said.

The defensive tactics may have been deployed "due to low morale and reluctance to fight", the report said.

It added that Russian generals most likely wanted to maintain defensive positions to the death.

The tactic of shooting deserters itself could be causing the "low quality, low morale and indiscipline of Russian soldiers", the report said.

In a rare hint of a possible retreat that Ukrainians treated with skepticism, a Moscow-appointed official in the occupied southern region of Kherson said Russian troops are “most likely” to move across the Dnieper River, away from the city of Kherson.

Kirill Stremousov also told Russian state television that all Ukrainian attacks have been repelled.

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Tens of thousands of civilians have been evacuated from the city of Kherson in the face of a Ukrainian counteroffensive.

Russian authorities removed their country's flag on Thursday from the Kherson administration building, a week after the regional government moved out.

In a recently recaptured village on the frontline of Ukraine's counteroffensive against the Russian invasion, one resident who stayed behind, who gave her name as Tatiana, told Sky News that the Russian soldiers said they had been forced to fight. Asked if she felt sorry for them, she said "they're just children."

Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy accused the Kremlin of committing "energy terrorism" as some 4.5 million Ukrainians were left without power following Russian attacks on its energy network, according to the BBC.

Russia has carried out large attacks on Ukrainian power facilities.

The strikes come as officials say Russian troops are likely to withdraw from the key southern city of Kherson.

After some painful defeats on the battlefield, Russia increased attacks recently on electricity infrastructure in cities away from the front lines.

In just the last month, one-third of the country's power stations have reportedly been destroyed, according to President Zelenskyy.

The Ukrainian government has been forced to urge the population to try and use energy sparingly as a result.