Hundreds of residents of Russian-occupied Oleshky crossed into Ukraine on Saturday in an evacuation carried out under a six-day localised truce. The Oleshky evacuation truce was reached with mediation from US First Lady Melania Trump and help from Pope Leo XIV, according to Al Jazeera.
According to BBC World, evacuees travelled by bus through Crimea, Anapa and Belarus before arriving at a military facility in Chernihiv. Residents had a four-hour window on Friday to leave. A convoy of 25 buses was brought in for up to 750 evacuees, and ambulances were provided for people with limited mobility.
Al Jazeera reports that the six-day ceasefire covering Oleshky is the longest local pause in fighting since 2022. Residents told the broadcaster that food deliveries stopped in May, pushing hundreds of people toward starvation. One evacuee said she and others chopped grass and squash to hold on.
Oleshky had a pre-war population of about 24,000, according to Al Jazeera. That figure fell to an estimated 1,700 before the evacuation. BBC World reports that up to 6,000 people, including 200 children, were believed to still live in Oleshky and the surrounding areas, with 1,700 in the city itself. These remaining population figures are estimates and have not been confirmed by officials.
Oleshky was seized by Russia in the first days of the full-scale invasion in February 2022. The town sits between the Dnipro River and Russian forces, a few kilometres from the front line.
Russian Human Rights Commissioner Yana Lantratova said the two sides agreed to carry out regular humanitarian missions, according to Al Jazeera. She pledged to work with her Ukrainian counterpart, Dmytro Lubinets, to help those who stayed behind. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy thanked the United States and the first lady for mediating and called for further steps toward de-escalation. Fighting and drone attacks continue elsewhere on the front.
Several key points remain unclear. Ukrainian officials have not said how many residents were evacuated or how many remained, so the evacuee count is only given as "hundreds" by BBC World. Accounts of the food shortage and living conditions come from residents and have not been independently verified. No response from Russian officials beyond Lantratova’s statements has been reported, and the status of the truce after Sunday evening, when it is due to end, is not yet known.
Russian and Ukrainian officials say they plan regular humanitarian missions. Evacuees now face challenges finding housing and work in Ukraine.
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This article was written with AI assistance from the published reporting listed above. It is part of the World Brief daily news podcast.