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Tens of thousands of civilians and Russian-appointed officials are being moved out of Ukraine's southern Kherson region ahead of a Ukrainian offensive, says the Russia-installed local leader.

Vladimir Saldo has said that all Russian-appointed departments and ministries would cross the Dnieper river, and some 50-60,000 civilians would also leave in an "organised, gradual displacement".

Ukraine has called on residents to ignore the Russian move. The head of Kherson's regional administration has claimed that Russia wanted to take civilians hostage and use them as human shields. The transfer or deportation of civilians by an occupying power from occupied territory is considered a war crime.

In a separate development, Russia's Vladimir Putin said he had signed a decree imposing martial law on four Ukrainian regions, including Kherson, which Moscow annexed last month in a move rejected as illegal by the international community.

He told Russia's Security Council that it would give regional leaders additional powers to maintain social order and safeguard important facilities.

Newshour's Rebecca Kesby has been speaking to Michael Clarke, visiting Professor in the War Studies Department at King's College London for more about what all this means.

(Photo: A general view shows the Russia-controlled city of Kherson, Ukraine July 24, 2022. Credit: Reuters)

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