Truce begins in Ukraine city where residents ate weeds to survive

Updated 40 minutes ago

Ukrainian officials and Russia's defence ministry say the limited ceasefire is being respected. The truce, which the White House said was secured by US First Lady Melania Trump, is meant to allow aid deliveries and a civilian evacuation on Friday.

Oleshky, along the front line in the Kherson region, is trapped on one side by the Dnipro River, which separates it from Ukrainian positions, and on the other by Russian forces.

There are concerns that the truce will not hold, with one resident saying: "I don't believe in Russia's humanity."

Up to 6,000 people, including 200 children, remain in Oleshky and its surrounding areas, Kyiv believes, with only 1,700 still living in the city itself.

Before the war it was home to 24,000 people, but it was seized by Russia during the first days of its full-scale invasion in February 2022.

Conditions have become so desperate that not only is getting supplies into the city extremely difficult, but escape is highly dangerous because the routes out of Oleshky have been mined and subject to drone attack.

Pope Leo XIV appealed earlier this month to Russia's President Vladimir Putin to allow food and medical aid into Oleshky as well as a safe evacuation, and urged his Ukrainian counterpart Volodymyr Zelensky to co-operate with Moscow over a ceasefire.

The current truce is supposed to allow supplies in and enable roads to be cleared of mines to allow people safe passage out in an evacuation planned to take place on Friday.

"I don't know how long I will have to spend there," she said, worried about not being able to join the evacuation.

It is hard to make contact with people in Oleshky as communication is patchy and many are reluctant to speak of the situation in fear of reprisals from the Russians, making it difficult to verify reports the ceasefire is being implemented.

Many details on the evacuation plans are unclear, initially including how and where to register for it. Some people want to know if they can bring their pets. Others are questioning what future they will have if they opt to leave their homes.

"It is critically important that this mission to rescue our people proceeds successfully and safely," Kyrylo Budanov, the head of Zelensky's office, said on Tuesday.

Russia's defence ministry said units from the army's Dnepr group had been conducting "engineering reconnaissance" and clearing main access roads into the village of "explosive and booby-trap devices".

While people are optimistic about leaving, there are also fears that Russia may not allow them to return to Ukraine, or examine their phones and online activity for signs of Ukrainian support, which could see them be taken away and tortured.

Someone who has been speaking to family in Oleshky said they fear shooting could restart during evacuations and Ukraine will somehow be blamed for not upholding the truce.

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.

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 (03:00 in Ukraine; 01:00 GMT) in preparation for the humanitarian operation.

The truce is due to be in place until 23:59 local time on 1 November, according to Davyd Arakhamia, a Ukrainian MP who heads Zelensky's party in parliament.

"This is part of a humanitarian mission being carried out with the mediation and co-ordination of US First Lady Melania Trump, in co-operation with Yana Lantratova, Russia's Commissioner for Human Rights," Lubinets wrote on social media.

Ukraine's military general staff said that silence was being observed over the operation for humanitarian purposes, and urged people not to trust unverified reports or spread rumours about "the routes, time and place of the movement of people and humanitarian convoys".

Zelensky has warned that routes out of Oleshky that are demined by Russia will ensure that those civilians leaving Oleshky will "head towards Russia and stay there". However, he said some would get to Ukrainian-controlled territory "one way or another", and ideally anyone trapped would be able to reach their destination and evacuate to Ukraine.

The White House said last week that "non-military, civilian leaders from both countries would work together to visit Oleshky residents in their homes and determine the level of assistance they require".

While the US first lady is relatively lower profile than some of her predecessors - and only occasionally seen at White House events - she has become involved in addressing humanitarian issues stemming from the Russia-Ukraine war.

While a truce is under way in Oleshky, elsewhere strikes continue.

Additional reporting by Paul Kirby, Hafsa Khalil and Sareen Habeshian