Shocking moment Russian troops open fire on unarmed protesters in an occupied Ukrainian city

This is the shocking moment Russian troops were caught on video opening fire and hurling stun grenades at unarmed civilians.

Russian troops occupying Kherson, Ukraine, used stun grenades and gunfire to disperse a rally of protesters as they gathered in Svobody Square.

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Multiple videos on social media showed crowds gathering in the square today before loud bangs and flashes followed by fierce gunfire caused them to flee.

It’s unclear if the soldiers originally fired into the sky, but it’s believed they aimed their guns at civilians. reports The Telegraph.

Heavy gunfire was heard for over a minute as smoke spread across the square.

Dmytro Kuleba, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine, said: “In Kherson, Russian war criminals opened fire on unarmed people who were peacefully protesting against invaders.

“This is the ugly face of Russia, a disgrace to humanity. We must stop Russia! Sanction them, isolate them, hold war criminals accountable.”

The press service of the Ukrainian Armed Forces added in a statement: “Russian security forces ran up, started throwing stun grenades into the crowd and started shooting.”

Kherson, about 60 miles northwest of Crimea, was the first major Ukrainian city to be occupied by Russian forces.

There were regular large civil demonstrations against the occupiers, with Russian troops struggling to maintain control.

Footage from the aftermath of the event appeared to show at least one civilian lying on the ground, bleeding profusely.

Local media later confirmed that the only person reported wounded at the scene was the man in the video.

In one of the videos, civilians can be seen running through smoky streets as Russian soldiers approach them, firing their rifles in the air.

The smoke may have been tear gas, while the charge hits are thought to have been caused by stun grenades.

Ukrainian media reported that a monument in the middle of the square had been defaced with graffiti.

The vandals wrote a message accusing Ukrainian forces of “killing the children of Donbass” and that locals were trying to clean it up.

The attacks came as Vladimir Putin’s warships opened fire on civilian areas in the Black Sea port city of Odessa today, in the first time residents have been attacked.

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