In the Russian-occupied frontline town of Oleshky in Kherson Oblast, a ceasefire has been in force since 3 a.m. local time to enable an aid operation for the sealed-off settlement. The Russian side confirmed this overnight, as reported by Der Tagesspiegel, citing the dpa news channel and zdfheute.de. The General Staff in Kyiv had also confirmed the agreement beforehand. The humanitarian operation is now due to begin on Tuesday, 27 October.
During the multi-day truce, food and medicine are to be brought to the residents in need. At the same time, a humanitarian corridor is to be created so that people can leave the region – according to Der Tagesspiegel, either towards Russia or into the areas controlled by Kyiv.
A corridor through a minefield
The town lies directly on the front line and, according to consistent reports, is completely mined. Because there was no safe route, the Ukrainian armed forces temporarily used drones to fly in aid supplies. According to Der Tagesspiegel and zdfheute.de, many of the unmanned aircraft were shot down by Russian troops. Under the agreement, mines are now to be cleared to make the aid corridor passable. According to Deutsche Welle, the Russian army chief Valery Gerasimov stated that engineer reconnaissance and the safe transport of the humanitarian convoy were being organised for the delivery of the goods.
How many people are still holding out in Oleshky is only an estimate: Der Tagesspiegel cites 1,500 to 2,000 residents, including dozens of children; zdfheute.de speaks of around 2,000 remaining inhabitants. Before Russia’s war of aggression, about 24,000 people lived in the town on the bank of the Dnipro. Including the surrounding villages, up to 6,000 people are said to be suffering hardship, reports Der Tagesspiegel. After the destruction of the Kakhovka reservoir dam in 2023, according to Deutsche Welle, around 90 per cent of the town area was flooded; today there is a lack of food, electricity and water.
Registration by 28 October
A control mechanism is intended to ensure that the ceasefire holds. According to ZDF correspondent Dara Hassanzadeh in Odesa, all residents must register at the local hospital by 28 October – regardless of whether they want to stay or move to the areas controlled by Kyiv. At each further evacuation stage, this list could be compared with those actually present. According to zdfheute.de, it is unclear whether the roughly 2,000 remaining residents will be allowed to leave the town at all. The evacuation is not due to begin until the coming days, writes Der Tagesspiegel.
“We call on everyone to handle the information you receive and pass on with particular care during this period,” the General Staff said on Telegram, according to Der Tagesspiegel. “Do not trust unconfirmed reports, and do not spread rumours about routes, times and places where people and humanitarian convoys are moving.”
The General Staff stressed that the ceasefire applies exclusively to the humanitarian operation. Fighting continues at other front sections, reports Der Tagesspiegel.
Mediation from Washington, scepticism on the ground
The humanitarian ceasefire goes back to an initiative by the White House. According to the account of the administration of US President Donald Trump, First Lady Melania Trump mediated the local truce between Moscow and Kyiv. Pope Leo XIV had also asked for help for Oleshky in a phone call with Kremlin chief Vladimir Putin, writes Der Tagesspiegel. According to the Kremlin, a successful humanitarian operation in Oleshky could serve as a model for other front sections.
Scepticism on the ground is great. The residents of the region had experienced occupation, war crimes and above all broken promises, reports ZDF correspondent Hassanzadeh from Odesa. The General Staff in Kyiv, by contrast, is relying on the agreed control mechanism. Earlier in the year, former residents had already told the AFP news agency that those remaining in the town were starving, that medicines were lacking, and that they could not leave Oleshky easily. In recent months, Moscow and Kyiv had repeatedly accused each other of triggering a humanitarian catastrophe by shelling the town.
Editor’s note: Whether the ceasefire will hold beyond the duration of the aid operation and how many people can actually be evacuated cannot currently be assessed. What will be decisive is likely whether the control mechanism and the mine clearance work as agreed.
