6,000 Russians killed in 6 days of war, claims Ukraine's Zelenskyy

Kyiv, Mar 02: Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has claimed that almost 6,000 Russians killed in 6 days of war, reports news agency Reuters. Zelenskyy said almost 6,000 Russian soldiers have been killed since the invasion began last Thursday. Russia has not released overall casualty numbers and the figure could not be confirmed.

Zelenskyy also urged the world's Jewish community to speak out against Russia after a Russian missile hit the site of a Holocaust massacre in Kyiv.

In a speech posted on Facebook, Zelenskyy on Wednesday denounced a Russian strike that hit Holocaust memorial site Babi Yar in Kyiv.

He said: "This is beyond humanity. Such missile strike means that for many Russians our Kyiv is absolute foreign. They know nothing about our capital, about our history. They have orders to erase our history, our country and all of us." "What will be next if even Babi Yar (is hit), what other military' objects, NATO bases' are threatening Russia? St. Sophia's Cathedral, Lavra, Andrew's Church?" he asked, referring to sites in Kyiv held sacred by Ukrainian and Russian Orthodox believers around the world.

"I am now addressing all the Jews of the world. Don't you see what is happening?... Nazism is born in silence. So shout about killings of civilians," he said.

In a Facebook post, Ukraine's Minister of Defence Reznikov said, "The nature of events is changing. Russian invaders are trying to somehow maintain the fighting capacity of their units. But it gets worse. This is evidenced by the repeated facts of the surrender of groups of Russian soldiers."

"The enemy was afraid of direct contact with Ukrainian defenders. Therefore, they moved to the criminal tactics of shelling of peaceful cities," he added.

Meanwhile, Russian military claims to have taken control of Ukraine's Kherson.

"The Russian divisions of the armed forces have taken the regional centre of Kherson under full control," defence ministry spokesman Igor Konashenkov said in televised remarks.

Russia's invasion of Ukraine, which began last Thursday, has resulted in several sanctions, trade restrictions and financial penalties.