JRL NEWSWATCH: “How Citizen Spies Foiled Putin’s Grand Plan for One Ukrainian City” – New York City
“A partisan cell in Kherson spied on, undermined and even hunted down Russian soldiers. Now that Vladimir V. Putin’s forces are gone, people feel free to talk — and to brag a little.”
“Guided by … Ukrainian security services … ordinary citizens formed themselves into a grass-roots resistance movement. … They took clandestine videos of Russian troops and sent them to Ukrainian forces along with map coordinates. They used code names and passwords to circulate guns and explosives …. Some even formed small attack teams that picked off Russian soldiers at night, making the [city’s] fear and paranoia … two-sided. When the Russian Army hastily pulled out in mid-November, … Kherson became a powerful symbol. To allies questioning Ukraine’s resolve, and to Ukrainians themselves who had suffered so much misery and death and needed a glimmer of hope, Kherson showed what was possible. …”