The number of mines is extremely large there
In the weeks since Russian forces withdrew from Kherson on November 9, the city has not found peace but a different kind of war — one waged from the air and hidden in the earth. At least 32 civilians have been killed by bombardments since the retreat, while soldiers departing the only major Ukrainian city Moscow had fully occupied left behind more than 5,000 explosive devices, some concealed inside children's toys. Liberation, it turns out, does not arrive all at once; it must be cleared, inch by inch, from a landscape designed to keep killing long after the soldiers have gone.
- Russian forces have killed at least 32 people in Kherson through sustained airstrikes since their own withdrawal — turning retreat into a prolonged siege from across the Dnieper River.
- A single strike on November 24 killed seven and wounded 21, while 60 rockets rained on residential buildings in Dnipro, wounding 13 and leaving bodies suspected beneath the rubble of seven apartment blocks.
- Retreating Russian soldiers booby-trapped the territory they left behind, hiding explosives inside soccer balls, dolls, and children's toys — a deliberate design to maim civilians, especially children, in the weeks and months ahead.
- Ukrainian demining teams have cleared over 5,000 explosive objects and 450 hectares of land, but authorities warn the scale of contamination is vast and the work far from finished.
- A prisoner exchange — nine Russian soldiers for 12 Ukrainian fighters, including personnel from Mariupol and Chornobyl — offered a rare, fragile moment of negotiated humanity amid the ongoing destruction.
Kherson was the only major Ukrainian city Russia had fully occupied, and when Moscow's forces withdrew across the Dnieper River on November 9, it was hailed as a significant Ukrainian victory. But liberation has arrived with a brutal asterisk. At least 32 civilians have since been killed by Russian airstrikes on the city, including seven who died in a single strike on November 24. The bombardments have not stopped; they have simply changed form — now falling from the air rather than marching through the streets.
What the retreating soldiers left on the ground is equally chilling. Ukrainian Interior Ministry adviser Rostyslav Smirnov described during a national broadcast the discovery of mines hidden inside children's toys — explosives nestled among soccer balls, concealed within dolls. More than 5,000 explosive objects have already been removed from the liberated areas, and demining teams have cleared some 450 hectares of land. Smirnov was direct: the primary mission in the liberated territories is now making the ground safe enough for ordinary life to resume.
The violence has spread beyond Kherson's borders. In Dnipro, 60 rockets struck residential buildings, wounding 13 people and leaving officials to suspect more casualties buried beneath the rubble of seven damaged apartment blocks. In Chasiv Yar, in the Donetsk region, a residential building was struck on Saturday, injuring three more.
Russia had declared Kherson — along with Zaporizhzhia, Luhansk, and Donetsk — annexed in September, yet never fully controlled any of these regions and has now ceded significant ground. The city itself is now divided by the Dnieper, with Ukrainian forces on the western bank and Russian positions across the water. Amid the ruin, one quiet exchange took place: nine Russian soldiers were swapped for 12 Ukrainian fighters, among them combatants from Mariupol and staff from the Chornobyl nuclear facility. It was a rare, small gesture of coordination in a conflict that otherwise offers little. For the people of Kherson, the work of survival — clearing mines, mourning the dead, rebuilding — has only just begun.
Kherson has become a city under siege from the air. Since Russian forces withdrew across the Dnieper River on November 9, the regional capital—the only major Ukrainian city Moscow had fully occupied—has endured relentless bombardment. At least 32 people have been killed by Russian airstrikes in the weeks since the pullback, according to Igor Klimenko, chief of Ukraine's National Police. On November 24 alone, seven people died and 21 more were wounded in a single strike.
But the immediate toll from falling ordnance tells only part of the story. As Russian soldiers retreated from Kherson and surrounding territory, they left behind a landscape laced with explosives—not just conventional mines, but devices hidden inside children's toys. Rostyslav Smirnov, an adviser to Ukraine's Interior Ministry, described the discovery during a national telethon broadcast: mines nestled between soccer balls, explosives concealed in dolls and playthings. The intent was clear: to kill and maim civilians, especially children, long after the soldiers had gone. Rescue workers have already removed more than 5,000 explosive objects from the liberated areas of Kherson region and the city itself. The work continues, methodical and grim.
The violence has not been confined to Kherson. In Dnipro, a city further north, Russian missiles struck residential buildings in a barrage of 60 rockets. Thirteen people were wounded in those attacks, and Ukrainian officials suspect more bodies lie buried in the rubble of seven damaged apartment blocks. In the smaller city of Chasiv Yar, in the Donetsk region to the east, a residential building was hit on Saturday, injuring three people.
The scale of the mine-clearing operation underscores the magnitude of what Russian forces left behind. Ukrainian demining teams have cleared at least 450 hectares of land in the region and removed 3,500 explosives. Yet the work is far from finished. Smirnov emphasized that the primary focus of the Ukrainian military in the liberated territories is now demining—making the ground safe enough for people to walk, for children to play, for life to resume. "The number of mines is extremely large there," he said, describing a constant stream of photographs documenting explosives found in toys and other civilian objects.
Kherson's liberation came after Ukrainian forces advanced rapidly through the region in early November, forcing Moscow to abandon territory it had claimed to annex. Russia had declared Kherson, along with Zaporizhzhia, Luhansk, and Donetsk, as annexed territories in September. Yet despite these unilateral declarations, Russian forces never fully controlled any of these regions and have now lost significant ground in Kherson. The city itself is now split by the Dnieper River, with Ukrainian forces on the western bank and Russian positions across the water.
Amidst the destruction and the painstaking work of clearing mines, there has been one small exchange of humanity. Ukraine and Russia conducted a prisoner swap, releasing nine Russian soldiers and 12 Ukrainian fighters. Among those freed were combatants from Mariupol and personnel from the Chornobyl nuclear facility. Both sides confirmed the exchange, a rare moment of coordination in an otherwise brutal conflict.
The aftermath of occupation is proving as deadly as the occupation itself. For the people of Kherson, the real work of survival—clearing the ground, burying the dead, rebuilding—has only just begun.
Notable Quotes
The number of mines is extremely large there. Constantly I receive photographic documents about munitions discovered in children's toys, including a mine found between two soccer balls.— Rostyslav Smirnov, adviser to Ukraine's Interior Ministry
The Hearth Conversation Another angle on the story
Why would Russian forces booby-trap toys specifically? That seems like a deliberate choice.
It is. When you're retreating from territory you know you'll lose, you're essentially trying to extend your reach into the civilian population even after you're gone. Toys are perfect for that—they're what children touch first. It's terror by design.
And the scale of mines they left behind—5,000 objects—does that suggest they planned this withdrawal in advance?
It suggests they had time to prepare it. You don't hide that many explosives in that many places by accident. It's methodical. Whether they knew weeks in advance or just had days, the intent was to make the territory as uninhabitable as possible.
How long does demining typically take in a city the size of Kherson?
Months, sometimes years. They've cleared 450 hectares so far, but that's just the beginning. Every building needs to be checked, every street, every park. And they're doing it while people are trying to come back home, trying to live.
The prisoner exchange—does that signal anything about the state of the war?
It shows both sides are still willing to negotiate, at least on some things. But it's a small gesture in a much larger conflict. The real negotiation is happening on the ground, in places like Kherson.
What happens to a city psychologically after something like this?
It changes. People will be afraid of toys for a while. They'll be afraid of the ground beneath their feet. Trust takes longer to rebuild than buildings do.