«It’ll be even worse there than in Oleshky,» — on the Kinburn Spit, people are left without food and cannot leave

On the occupied Kinburn Spit, people are running out of food, medicines, firewood and even matches. There are 42 residents left in Vasylivka and around 12–13 in Pokrovske. Some people have been waiting to be evacuated for three months now, but the Russian military won’t let them leave the villages.

This was reported by a local resident, Serhii, whose family managed to leave the Spit, in a report by «Suspilne».

According to him, no food has been delivered to the occupied territory for a long time, and people are forced to dismantle damaged houses to obtain firewood.

«It’s very difficult there: in Heroivske, in Pokrovske, and in Vasylivka. People have neither food nor medicine; there’s no point even talking about medicine. There’s no firewood. People are already dismantling the ruined houses, hauling away whatever they can find — some firewood. People are even running out of ordinary matches, let alone any sort of food,» the man said.

In Vasylivka, according to Serhii, 42 people have been preparing to leave for three months now. They’ve packed their belongings, but the occupiers won’t let them out. Around 12–13 residents remain in Pokrovske. People are barely scraping by: the Russian military shot any livestock that could have provided food a long time ago.

«They’re barely scraping by there. There used to be some livestock, but the Russians shot it and ate it ages ago. Otherwise, perhaps people might have slaughtered some and had something to eat, but as it is, there’s nothing,» said Serhii.

Leaving the spit is difficult because the roads are mined. According to the man, his family’s car hit a mine whilst trying to leave the area. No one was injured. Because of the mines, people also cannot safely reach the forest, the sea or Lymany.

«But what are they to do when there’s no food? They’re simply hostages in that area. Nothing gets in there at all. In Heroiske, they’d put fishing nets, and people were catching fish there to get food. Two people were blown up. That’s it — nobody’s putting them anymore; there’ll be no more fish, no more food. No flour, no fats — there’s nothing of the sort. How are people supposed to live?» the man said.

Not everyone can leave, even if they had the chance: some people have no money, whilst others don’t want to leave the homes they built with their own hands. Serhii fears that the residents’ situation will become even more difficult in winter.

«It’ll be even worse there than in Oleshky. In Oleshky, at least, it’s on, how shall I put it, a large stretch of land. But there, the spit is completely cut off. From the Dnipro to the bay near Rybalschyk — it’s only 4 kilometres away. Right now, people are just about to run out of food — and that’s it. If nothing changes, I don’t know what will happen there,» he said.

As well as a shortage of basic necessities, local residents are facing pressure from the Russian military. Serhii spoke of threats, beatings, abductions and the murders of two women.

«If you look at them the wrong way — that’s it, they’re already shouting at you: «I’ll take you prisoner». Especially the drunk ones, as they stagger around the villages, getting drunk there, they pick on people. If you so much as look at them the wrong way, they turn up the next day and immediately turn the place upside down. Just because you looked at them the wrong way. Two women were killed. One was shot, the other had her neck broken,» he said.

According to Serhii, the occupiers also forced locals to obtain Russian passports. During the so-called referendum, people were gathered in a club, which was surrounded by armed soldiers.

«And young men, those who, so to speak, are fit for military service, are immediately given a passport and a call-up notice. As they were holding the referendum, they told everyone to gather at the club; there was to be some sort of meeting there. People gathered, and they surrounded the club — there were about 15–20 men with automatic rifles. And then the referendum took place,» the man said.

Dmytro Pletenchuk, a spokesperson for the Ukrainian Navy, explained that it is too early to talk about the liberation of the Kinburn Spit. Such an operation requires stable logistics, the ability to evacuate personnel and replenish supplies. According to him, the Russian military are using local residents as cover.

«I wouldn’t talk about the possibility of de-occupation just yet, as long as the left bank (of the Kherson region, — note) remains under occupation, and as long as we are unable to establish a foothold there. It is too early to talk about the liberation of Kinburn at the moment,» the spokesperson noted.

Serhii emphasises that we must not forget the people on the Kinburn Spit, even if there are only a few of them left.

«I realise that there are the Oleshky, lots of people and children there, but there are people here too. And what’s more, it’s a part of the Mykolaiv region that is under occupation. And no one is rushing to help; no one is turning to anyone for help,» he said.

What is happening on Kinburn?

Since the start of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, the territory of the Kinburn Spit has been occupied by Russian troops. In fact, for over a year now, the Russians have been shelling the Ochakiv and Kutsurub communities in the Mykolaiv region from there.

To date, only three settlements in the Mykolaiv region remain occupied, all of which are situated on the Kinburn Spit. These are:

• the village of Vasylivka. Before the full-scale war, the population stood at 382;
• the village of Pokrovka. Before the full-scale war, the population stood at 229;
• the village of Pokrovske. Before the full-scale war, the population stood at 177 people.

Vitalii Kim, former head of the Mykolaiv Regional Military Administration, stated that the liberation of the Kinburn Spit is a matter of time, «and not very long at that». This was also confirmed by Nataliia Humeniuk, spokesperson for the Southern Defence Forces.

Meanwhile, the Russian occupiers continue to shell and lay mines in the protected area of the Kinburn Spit. Almost every day, wild animals are killed by landmines there, and there have also been cases of human casualties. This is discussed in the NikVesti article, «On the Brink of Destruction: How the Kinburn Spit Nature Reserve is Suffering from the Actions of the Occupiers».

Throughout the occupation, forests on the Kinburn Spit have been catching fire from time to time. The situation is usually exacerbated by the fact that the Russian occupiers have prevented rescue teams from extinguishing the fires, meaning they can rage for weeks. At the same time, as noted by the Regional Military Administration, the Mykolaiv region is unable to assist in extinguishing the fires there, as all fire brigades and equipment capable of reaching the area are located in the occupied territories of the Kherson region.

Ombudsman Liudmyla Denisova reported that the fires on the Kinburn Spit have put Red List orchids and other unique plants and animals at risk.

Once the Kinburn Spit has been de-occupied, it will take time for nature to recover on its own, according to «Biloberezhzhia Sviatoslava». This will take place whilst demining of the protected area is underway.

It has emerged that the US proposal to end the Russian-Ukrainian war includes, in particular, a clause on the withdrawal of Russian troops from the temporarily occupied Kinburn Spit, which partly falls within the administrative boundaries of the Mykolaiv region.

It has been reported that Russian troops fear the possible liberation of the Kinburn Spit and Tendrivska Spit by the Ukrainian military, and are therefore redeploying special forces from Sevastopol to these areas.

In the summer of 20206, a combat mission was carried out on the occupied Kinburn Spit, during which a robotic system was delivered to the peninsula using an unmanned maritime platform.