Desperate residents evacuate devastated Russian-occupied Oleshky by bus - The Independent

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Residents in the occupied Ukrainian town of Oleshky began a desperate evacuation on Friday as a localised ceasefire between Moscow and Kyiv held for a third day.

A fleet of 25 buses with at least 750 seats stood ready to withdraw locals seeking to leave, Kyiv's human rights ombudsman, Dmytro Lubinets, said. His Russian counterpart, Yana Lantratova, added that space would also be provided for their pets.

Residents who wanted to leave were given a four-hour window to do so, lasting until 2pm local time (12pm GMT). Several hundred people are understood to have decided to stay.

“Everyone who wishes to leave Oleshky will be given the opportunity to leave safely,” Lubinets said. “At the same time, those who have decided to stay can stay and will receive all the necessary humanitarian support.”

Evacuees were given a choice of evacuating to Ukrainian or Russian-controlled territory, but those headed for Ukraine would have to travel into Russian-held land and take a Russian government plane to Belarus before driving across the border into Chernihiv.

The beleaguered frontline town in southern Ukraine, under Russian occupation since Vladimir Putin invaded Ukraine in February 2022, is subject to a temporary ceasefire until Sunday, reportedly following brokering efforts from US First Lady Melania Trump.

Up to 6,000 people, including 200 children, remain in the town and its surrounding areas, trapped without regular access to food, water or electricity. Many are said to have resorted to cooking garden weeds and pigeons to survive.

Ukrainian prime minister Sergiy Koretskyi initially said on Friday that 527 residents of the town were expected to return to Ukraine-held territory.

He later retracted the remarks to parliament saying: “There are no exact figures at the moment. The rescue operation is ongoing, and the data is changing.”

Mr Lubinets said the main priority was ensuring aid would reach every person who needs it. Ambulances and other vehicles for aid were expected to travel into the town later on Friday, he said.

The Ukrainian rights ombudsman met with locals in a video shared to social media. He was heard saying: “The problem is that a lot of people are staying. I was told that it was their choice. We will do everything possible for the humanitarian aid to arrive.”

Russia said on Thursday that it had prepared to rush “dozens of tonnes” of aid into town for those planning to stay.

Ms Lantratova was quoted as saying Moscow and Kyiv were sticking to their agreements, while a ceasefire was holding to enable aid to the town. Both commissioners and the US side had helped mediate the ceasefire.

“People ‌who wish to ‌travel to the Russian ⁠Federation are gathering here,” she said. “There are also people here who wish to travel to Ukraine. ‌Everyone will ​be given ‌the opportunity ⁠to do ⁠so.”

It follows weeks of efforts to organise a relief operation for residents of the acutely deprived town, which effectively stopped receiving regular food supplies in January.

Ukraine last month appealed to international organisations to help deliver aid to the town and facilitate evacuations, but Russia did not agree to provide safe access until a humanitarian agreement was announced last Friday.

According to the White House, residents wishing to leave during this week’s ceasefire would receive assistance and transportation to either Ukrainian-controlled territory or Russia.

But Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky warned on Sunday that Moscow could selectively de-mine evacuation routes to force residents towards Russia.

On Thursday, both sides said demining operations had been completed around the town and that the humanitarian operation was ready to begin, delivering aid to residents and letting some leave.

Two people were killed in the demining effort, Ms Lantratova said on Friday.

The evacuation and aid operation aims to address a crisis in a town marooned inside a war zone since 2022. But it is also part of a diplomatic dance where both sides want to show Donald Trump that they back his peace efforts.

Although US-mediated peace talks are due to resume next month in Abu Dhabi after a long pause, the two sides are far apart when it comes to terms for ending the war.

Trump has cast Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky as an obstacle to peace while praising Putin, who said on Thursday that Russia was “working on issues relating to a possible peaceful resolution of the Ukrainian crisis itself”.

However, Putin has also said that Russia ⁠is prepared ‌for a potential war with Europe, with a significant number of individual nations – plus the EU – having held strong in its support of Ukraine against Russia’s invasion.

The Russian president said his country would support any steps aimed at restoring relations with European countries, as he commented on his phone call with the leaders of Norway and Finland, which took place on Tuesday. But in a chilling threat, he said that if tensions were to escalate too far, there “would be no winners”.

"First of all, we are ready, but we want no war with Europe”, Putin said. “And if anyone wants it, let them prepare.”

Elsewhere in Ukraine on Thursday and Friday, Russia struck an industrial facility near Kremenchuk while hitting the capital, Kyiv and Kharkiv, the second biggest city, to cause fires, officials said on the Telegram messaging app, after deadly strikes a day before.

Russia has struck military facilities in Ukraine, the Russian defence ministry said on Telegram on Friday.

It added that it hit energy infrastructure in and around Kyiv, as well as in the Dnipropetrovsk region, port facilities in the Odesa region and cargo vessels it said were used by the military.

Russian authorities downed most of the more than 850 drones headed overnight towards Moscow, the capital's Mayor Sergei Sobyanian said on Telegram.