2,000 Residents Trapped in Oleshky as Trump-Brokered Truce Begins
A localized ceasefire took effect Tuesday in southern Ukraine to allow aid into the Russian-occupied town, while missile strikes continued in Kyiv.
By Harper Laurent ·
Up to 2,000 people are currently stranded in the Russian-occupied town of Oleshky, southern Ukraine, facing dwindling supplies of food and medicine. The United Nations reports that residents cannot leave the area due to explosive mines and frequent drone attacks. To address the crisis, a localized ceasefire between Russian and Ukrainian forces took effect at 3 a.m. on Tuesday.
The truce was arranged by U.S. First Lady Melania Trump, who led negotiations with civilian representatives from both nations after receiving briefings from U.N. officials on the town's condition. The pause in fighting is scheduled to last through Saturday, though negotiators have noted that deep mistrust between the two sides has complicated previous attempts at similar agreements. Both the Russian and Ukrainian militaries, along with their respective negotiators, confirmed the start of the ceasefire in separate statements.
The humanitarian mission planned for later this week aims to deliver doctors, medicines, food, and water to Oleshky. These supplies are intended to stabilize the town before evacuation corridors are opened for the remaining residents. The operation is set against the backdrop of a new round of U.S.-brokered talks between Moscow and Kyiv, which are expected to begin next month. These negotiations aim to end the war, which has continued for more than four and a half years.
While the truce held in the south, missile attacks resumed in the capital. Minutes after the 3 a.m. ceasefire start time, multiple ballistic missile explosions were reported in Kyiv, triggering air alerts across several regions of the country. Earlier, on Monday, Russian ballistic missiles struck the grounds of a university in Kyiv, killing one person and injuring ten, according to city officials. In Kharkiv, Ukraine's second-largest city, late Monday attacks resulted in two deaths and four injuries.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy reacted to the strikes in an online post, stating that the world needs to see that Russia shows a desire to kill and continue waging war. Oleshky is located in the partially occupied Kherson region, approximately 550 kilometers southeast of Kyiv. The town sits across the Dnipro River from the regional capital, Kherson. Russian forces captured Oleshky on the first day of the full-scale invasion in 2022. The town suffered further damage in June 2023 when floodwaters from a collapsed dam inundated the area.
The Dnipro River continues to separate Russian and Ukrainian forces in the region. Russian troops seized Kherson early in the 2022 invasion but withdrew to the other side of the river several months later. Negotiators involved in the current aid mission said the primary goal is to secure the town's basic needs before opening safe routes for evacuation. The localized ceasefire remains in effect as of Tuesday morning, with both sides monitoring the front lines.
