- Russia has been ramping up strikes on civilians along the Dnipro, a Ukrainian official told CNN.
- Shelling along the river has increased from 300 to 700 a day, Oleksandr Tolokonnikov told the outlet.
Russia is ramping up its aerial attacks on civilians along the Dnipro amid fears that Ukrainian troops will start launching new raids on the Russia-occupied eastern bank of the river, a Ukrainian official told CNN.
Oleksandr Tolokonnikov, spokesperson of the Kherson regional military administration, told the outlet that Russia's attacks have more than doubled in the space of one month.
"If a month and a half ago it was 300-350 shells, two to three bombs a day, and we thought it was a lot, now it is up to 750 shells a day," Tolokonnikov told the outlet, adding that bombs dropped have increased "many times over".
The relentless rate of attacks is such that "almost every hour, Su-34 and Su-35 planes are coming in to strike and directing these guided bombs at various settlements," he added.
In recent months, Russia has been pummeling the eastern Kherson region with upgraded, powerful glide bombs, mostly targeting civilian infrastructure.
These include attacks on Kherson City, which Ukraine retook in November last year.
In early October, Russia dropped 40 glide bombs on Kherson in just one night, Hans Petter Midttun, an expert at the Centre of Defence Strategies, wrote in a post for the Euromaidan Press advocacy group.
And on Saturday, Russian forces carried out more than 80 artillery attacks, launching about 460 shells and dropping 50 guide bombs on the Kherson region, killing one civilian and injuring five others, the Defense Forces of Southern Ukraine said in a Telegram post.
Tolokonnikov said the higher rates of attacks suggest Russia is growing concerned that Ukrainian troops will soon recapture the eastern bank of the Dnipro.
"It seems that Russians on the left bank are very worried that our brave soldiers will soon cross the river to them and start liberating the left bank," he told CNN.
Tolokonnikov added that the relentless attacks are a way for Russia to "warn" and "intimidate" the local population as well as Ukraine's Armed Forces as they gear up for new raids on the eastern bank.
Since establishing a bridgehead on the east bank of the Dnipro in April, Ukrainian forces have made only marginal gains of about 1.8 miles, the Institute for the Study of War said on Monday, citing geolocated footage.
The destruction of the Nova Kakhovka dam in June, which flooded the region, did not stop Ukraine's efforts to retake the eastern bank, as Insider previously reported.
The UK's Ministry of Defence said in an intelligence update in September that Ukraine and Russia were also launching raids on the area to draw troops away from the fierce battle on the front lines.