2,000 Trapped in Oleshky as Ceasefire Begins
A three-day pause in fighting allows an aid mission to enter the town, though missiles struck Kyiv shortly after the agreement took effect.
By Hana Gray ·
The pause in fighting began at 3 a.m. Tuesday to allow an aid mission into the Russian-occupied town of Oleshky. Up to 2,000 people remain stranded there with dwindling supplies of food and medicine. The United Nations says residents cannot leave because of explosive mines and drone attacks in the surrounding area.
U.S. First Lady Melania Trump led talks with civilian negotiators from Russia and Ukraine to secure the arrangement. Her office stated she met with U.N. officials who briefed her on the situation in the town before the negotiations began. Both Russian and Ukrainian negotiators, along with the militaries of the two countries, confirmed in separate statements that the ceasefire had started.
The local ceasefire is scheduled to last through Saturday, though it could extend longer. Deep mistrust between the two sides has prevented previous ceasefire attempts from holding. This pause is designed to precede a new round of U.S.-brokered talks expected next month. Those talks aim to end the war, which has continued for more than four and a half years.
The calm in the south did not hold in the capital. Minutes after 3 a.m., multiple ballistic missile explosions shook Kyiv, and air alerts sounded across several parts of the country. Late Monday, Russian ballistic missiles damaged the grounds of a university in Kyiv, killing one person and injuring ten, according to city officials.
In Kharkiv, Ukraine's second-largest city, authorities reported that attacks late Monday killed two people and injured four. President Volodymyr Zelenskyy posted online shortly after the strikes, writing that Russia was showing a desire to kill and continue waging war.
Oleshky is located in the Kherson region, about 550 kilometers southeast of Kyiv. Russian forces captured the town on the first day of their full-scale invasion in 2022. A dam collapse in June 2023 caused floodwaters to inundate the area, adding to the infrastructure damage.
Negotiators involved in the mission said they will transport doctors, medicines, food, and water to Oleshky. These supplies will be delivered before evacuation corridors are opened for the remaining residents.
Source: KNKX Public Radio
