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Truce Begins in Oleshky Amid Humanitarian Crisis
· Confirmed
In Short: A truce has begun in the Russian-occupied Ukrainian city of Oleshky, where residents have been trapped without food, water, and electricity for three years, according to the BBC (United Kingdom) and Uzalendo News (Kenya).
A truce has begun in the Russian-occupied Ukrainian city of Oleshky, where residents have been trapped without food, water, and electricity for three years, according to the BBC (United Kingdom) and Uzalendo News (Kenya).
The ceasefire, brokered by US First Lady Melania Trump, as announced by the White House, is set to facilitate humanitarian aid and the evacuation of civilians, reports the BBC (United Kingdom) and IBTimes India (India).
The BBC (United Kingdom) and Uzalendo News (Kenya) report that the truce began on October 27, a week after it was announced by Melania Trump. The White House stated that non-military, civilian leaders from both countries will work together to visit Oleshky residents in their homes and determine the level of assistance they require.
According to the BBC (United Kingdom) and Uzalendo News (Kenya), the city of Oleshky, which had a population of 24,000 before the war, has been seized by Russia since the start of its invasion in February 2022. No shops are open, and the city has had no electricity, gas, or water for three years.
The BBC (United Kingdom) and Uzalendo News (Kenya) also report that many residents have resorted to cooking garden weeds to survive, suffering extreme hunger and wanting to leave the city.
The BBC (United Kingdom) and Uzalendo News (Kenya) report that the truce is supposed to allow supplies to reach the city and enable its roads to be cleared of mines to allow people safe passage out.
The BBC (United Kingdom) and Uzalendo News (Kenya) also note that many residents fear the truce will not hold, with one resident saying, “I don't believe in Russia's humanity.”
The BBC (United Kingdom) and Uzalendo News (Kenya) report that the Kremlin blamed Ukraine for the crisis but backed the Vatican’s initiative.
The BBC (United Kingdom) and Uzalendo News (Kenya) also report that the Vatican said Pope Leo XIV “expressed his deep concern about the grave humanitarian situation in the city of Oleshky, in the Kherson region, and called for a ceasefire to allow the delivery of food and medical assistance, and the voluntary and safe evacuation of the civilian population.”
What's confirmed
- Ukraine now estimates some 6,000 people, including 200 children, remain in the city and its surrounding areas.
- US First Lady Melania Trump has helped broker a localised ceasefire between Russia and Ukraine in the war-hit Ukrainian city of Oleshky, the White House announced on Friday, October 23.
- Tue, Oct 27, 2026 | Jumada al-Awwal 15, 1448 | Fajr 05:05 | DXB 31.5 °C US first lady Melania Trump has secured a ceasefire between Russia and Ukraine in the Russian-controlled city of Oleshky, which will begin on October 29, the White House said on Friday.
- Russia's defence ministry said on Telegram it had stopped firing toward the Ukrainian city of Kherson - across the river from Oleshky - at 04:00 Moscow time (01:00 GMT) in preparation for the humanitarian operation.
- The Vatican said that Pope Leo “expressed his deep concern about the grave humanitarian situation in the city of Oleshky, in the Kherson region, and called for a ceasefire to allow the delivery of food and medical assistance, and the voluntary and safe evacuation of the civilian population”.
- Many worry the truce will not hold, with one resident saying: "I don't believe in Russia's humanity." Oleshky, home to 24,000 people before the war, was seized by Russia during the first days of its full-scale invasion in February 2022.
- "As head of the Ukrainian negotiating team, I confirm that the Ukrainian side is honouring its commitments," he wrote on Facebook.
- No shops are open, and the city has had no electricity, gas or water for three years.
- "I don't know how long I will have to spend there," she said, worried about not being able to join Friday's planned evacuation.
- The White House said in the statement last week that "non-military, civilian leaders from both countries will work together to visit Oleshky residents in their homes and determine the level of assistance they require".
- Ukraine has attempted to deliver supplies but has not had success in recent months, and it is deemed too dangerous to risk leaving on foot along mined roads out of the city.
- “Pope Leo personally called Putin and Zelenskyy, pushing for a ceasefire in Ukraine. Now the Trump White House is trying to give MELANIA TRUMP the credit, completely ignoring the Pope’s efforts!” wrote former Biden aide Chris Jackson.
What's still developing
- “The missiles hit very crowded areas, and there is not a single military facility nearby. This was a strike directly on the city, on its infrastructure,” he said on social media.
- The fire broke out on 14 September near an arms factory in the central city of Brasov and two Belarusians and a Ukrainian – residents in EU countries – were involved, authorities said.
- Both sides said they would observe the truce starting at 3 a.m. local time (0100 GMT).
- The call suggests the pontiff, who is recovering from a lung cancer operation, is still hard at work Pope Leo spoke with Russian President Vladimir Putin by phone on Friday, calling for a ceasefire in a Russian-occupied city in southern Ukraine, as he recovers in hospital from a lung cancer operation.
- Earlier, Ukraine’s human rights commissioner Dmytro Lubinets called the city “a death trap,” and said Russian authorities had failed to uphold previously agreed arrangements for a humanitarian mission to evacuate civilians.
- On the night of July 30, Russia fired more than 20 cruise missiles at Lviv, a city just 45 miles from the Polish border, killing a 35-year-old police officer and injuring 38 people.
- Kyiv time, on October 27, to carry out a humanitarian operation in the temporarily occupied city, according to the General Staff of the Ukrainian Armed Forces.
- The General Staff later confirmed that Ukraine's Defense Forces would carry out all orders regarding the mission in Oleshky, with the expectation of guaranteed access to the city.
- Last month, the Kremlin acknowledged that Oleshky faced "a critical situation" and "problems with supplies of food and medicine", but added that "Russia's military was working to resolve them" and blamed Kyiv.
- Russian strikes launched against Ukraine overnight into Saturday included 27 ballistic missiles and only one of them was intercepted, “simply because there are no interceptors for the Patriot system”, Zelenskyy said.
- More than 600 drones and dozens of missiles, such as advanced hypersonics, were fired on Ukraine, according to the military, hitting key civilian infrastructure.