Oleshky Evacuation: Residents Leave Besieged Ukrainian City
Residents of Oleshky, a city in southern Ukraine that is held by Russia, were evacuated on Friday, 30 October 2026, in a joint relief operation. The Guardian described it as the first joint relief operation of its kind in four years and eight months of war.
Oleshky sits on the Russian-occupied side of the Dnipro River, directly opposite Kherson. Ukrainian authorities said in mid-October that Russia was blocking humanitarian access to the city and refusing to agree to an evacuation corridor. In May, Ukraine's Foreign Ministry named Oleshky, Hola Prystan, Stara Zburivka and Nova Zburivka as communities where the humanitarian situation was particularly alarming. A United Nations humanitarian briefing to the Security Council on 9 October described Oleshky as one stark example of the wider situation facing civilians.
The operation depended on a localised ceasefire, meaning a temporary halt to fighting confined to one area, in Ukraine's southern Kherson region. That pause allowed the roads out of Oleshky to be cleared of mines. Reuters reported that demining was complete by 29 October. PBS reported that Russia and Ukraine had agreed to a brief truce to enable the aid operation and evacuations.
A humanitarian convoy of 25 buses and ambulances reached Oleshky to deliver food and medicine and to take out those who wished to leave, either for Russia or for Ukraine. Kyiv's delegation arrived in the city late on Friday morning to prepare the evacuation. Kyrylo Budanov, head of Ukraine's presidential office, said the humanitarian operation was under way.
Ukrainian lawmaker Davyd Arakhamia, who was part of the delegation, confirmed that some evacuees were travelling to the southern Russian city of Anapa. From there, they were to fly to Belarus and then travel onward by bus. Those bound for Ukraine were to go through Anapa and Belarus as well, then drive across the border into Ukraine's Chernihiv region. Ukrainian-held territory lies about 5km from Oleshky.
About 2,000 people remained in Oleshky, according to authorities and volunteers, and about 50 of them were children. Warnings of starvation have followed months of shortages of food and medical care. Earlier reports had suggested that more than 500 people wanted to move to Ukrainian territory, but it was unclear how many of them joined the convoy. Several hundred people, mainly older people, chose to stay.
Vitalii Bezgin, a Ukrainian official in Brussels, called on the European Union to increase international pressure on Russia to save people in Oleshky. U.S. first lady Melania Trump has claimed to have helped broker the ceasefire in the Oleshky area.
