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Oleshky evacuation begins but volunteer claims Russia already moved people outside of agreed terms
Confirmed
In Short: The evacuation of residents in Oleshky, a Ukrainian city under Russian occupation, began on Friday as part of a US-brokered ceasefire, officials from both Russia and Ukraine confirmed.
The population of Oleshky has dropped from 24,000 before the war to about 2,000, with up to 6,000 civilians remaining in frontline communities including Oleshky and Hola Prystan, among them more than 180 children.
Officials from Moscow and Kyiv arrived in Oleshky on Friday to oversee the operation, which includes the delivery of food, medical supplies, and other essentials to residents.
Twenty-five buses with a capacity of 750 passengers, along with ambulances for people with limited mobility, have been prepared to evacuate residents from Oleshky, according to Ukraine's Human Rights Ombudsman Dmytro Lubinets.
The ceasefire had been in effect for 54 consecutive hours as of Friday, and people wishing to leave Oleshky were given the opportunity to evacuate by 2 p.m. on October 30.
The Pope expressed deep concern over the humanitarian situation in Oleshky and called for food and medical supplies to reach affected residents during a phone call with Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Pope Leo XIV discussed the humanitarian catastrophe in Oleshky during a phone call.
The White House announced that the ceasefire is localized to Oleshky and would begin on October 29 to allow humanitarian aid in and prepare for civilian evacuations.
Melania Trump said she helped to broker a localized ceasefire between Russia and Ukraine in Oleshky to allow for humanitarian aid and the evacuation of civilians.
Despite the ceasefire, Russia and Ukraine continue strikes elsewhere, including the Ukrainian capital of Kyiv.
The Pope initiated the call to plead the cause of the besieged city of Oleshky, according to Cardinal Parolin, the Holy See’s foreign minister.
What this adds
The ceasefire and humanitarian aid operation are part of broader diplomatic efforts to address the dire humanitarian situation in Oleshky.
What's confirmed
- Washington (TDI): Russia and Ukraine have agreed to a temporary, localised ceasefire in the Russian-occupied Ukrainian city of Oleshky to facilitate humanitarian aid deliveries and civilian evacuations, following diplomatic efforts led by US First Lady Melania Trump, the White House announced on Friday.
- Pope Leo XIV expressed concern over the humanitarian situation in the Ukrainian city of Oleshky during a phone call with Russian President Vladimir Putin on Friday, urging a ceasefire to allow humanitarian aid deliveries and the safe evacuation of civilians, the Vatican said.
- “Under our agreement: first a ceasefire will be put in place; second, humanitarian aid will be delivered to Oleshky; and third, civilians will be allowed to move freely out of Oleshky,” Dmytro Lubinets, Ukraine’s human rights ombudsman, said in a video message posted online.
What's still developing
- Ukraine’s parliamentary faction leader and senior negotiator, David Arakhamia, said the humanitarian operation would aim to establish corridors for civilian evacuation and the delivery of assistance to Oleshky and surrounding areas.
- 28, that a proposed energy ceasefire with Russia had failed because Moscow continued striking Ukrainian energy infrastructure, but welcomed initial progress under a separate US-brokered humanitarian truce in Russian-occupied Oleshky.
- . 11; however, neither Russia nor Ukraine confirmed the agreement.
- Tuesday Moscow time “in connection with the humanitarian operation near Oleshky.” The Russian forces will also carry out “engineering reconnaissance” and ensure “safe movement of the humanitarian convoy” into the city, Gerasimov said.
- "As head of the Ukrainian negotiating team, I confirm that the Ukrainian side is honouring its commitments," Dmytro Lubinets, the parliamentary commissioner for human rights, said in a Facebook post confirming Russia's timing of its halt.
- “The situation in Oleshky is dire. Oleshky is a front-line war city on the brink of disaster. Oleshky’s remaining population is comprised primarily of elderly residents who urgently need medical attention, medicine, food, and clean water,” Trump said in a statement.
- Oleshky sits on the Russian-controlled side of the Dnieper river, opposite the provincial capital of Kherson, which is in Ukrainian hands.