Ukrainian evacuees cross border after Oleshky truce

Evacuees from Russian-occupied Oleshky arrived at the Ukrainian-Belarusian border on Saturday, ending a bus and plane journey through Russia and Belarus. Volunteers handed out coffee to the travelers, and relatives waited along the highway. The move followed a ceasefire in the Kherson region that began on Tuesday and is set to continue through Sunday evening.

The White House stated that U.S. first lady Melania Trump helped broker the localized agreement. Pope Leo XIV pressed both Russia and Ukraine to permit aid deliveries and evacuations. Melania Trump posted on social media Friday that the convoy could safely evacuate more than 750 people.

Ukrainian authorities have not disclosed the total number of residents who left Oleshky or the details of the route. An estimated 2,000 people remained in the city when the truce began. Those residents were offered evacuation to Ukrainian- or Russian-held territory, or the choice to stay with replenished food and medical supplies.

Ivan Yevhenovych, 48, described the conditions inside Oleshky prior to his departure. He said drone activity made street movement difficult and that staple foods had run out since the spring. He stated that landmines or drone strikes were killing residents every day. Yevhenovych said many residents chose to remain for their houses or animals.

Liza Paliy, 19, waited at the border for her father. She last saw him more than 2½ years ago when she fled the occupied city with her mother and sister. Tetiana Leonidivna, 71, thanked the Ukrainian soldiers who assisted with the departure.

Dmytro Lubinets, Ukraine's human rights ombudsman, described the operation as an important moment following difficult negotiations. He reported that evacuees ranged in age from just over a year old to 94. Lubinets said they traveled with pets, including dogs, cats, a parrot, and a raccoon.

Yana Lantratova, Russia's human rights commissioner, stated that both sides agreed to conduct regular humanitarian missions in and around Oleshky. She said some evacuees who chose to move to Russian-occupied territory reached a temporary shelter in Simferopol, located in Crimea.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Saturday that Russia launched drone attacks against energy and railway infrastructure overnight. He stated that 280,000 households in the Dnipro and Kyiv regions lost power. Repair crews were working to restore electricity to substations and power plants in the Dnipro, Kyiv, Sumy, and Kharkiv regions.

Russian Governor Yegor Kovalchuk reported that a Ukrainian drone attack killed two people in the Bryansk region on Saturday. The Russian Defense Ministry said its forces shot down 433 Ukrainian drones overnight.