Hundreds of civilians were evacuated from the Russian-occupied city of Oleshky in southern Ukraine on October 31, 2026.

Most evacuees chose to be transferred to Ukrainian-controlled territory. Starving, exhausted, and isolated, residents of Oleshky arrived in Ukraine after months without access to basic necessities.

Behind every face of a Ukrainian evacuated from the Kherson region lies a story of hardship and hope. They endured years under Russian occupation and months without adequate access to food, medicine, and other essential supplies.

Today, they can once again experience what it means to be free. It is vital that humanitarian access to Oleshky remains open so that more civilians can receive the assistance they urgently need.

Oleshky has been under Russian occupation since the first days of the full-scale invasion. In 2026, mines and drone attacks made even trips to buy bread and medicine dangerous.

A larger-scale evacuation required both a demined route and an agreement to cease hostilities while the evacuation convoy was in transit. The ceasefire came into effect at 03:00 on October 27 and ended at 22:59 Kyiv time on November 1. The route to the city was demined first. On October 30, a humanitarian convoy arrived in Oleshky.

According to Dmytro Lubinets, the Ukrainian Parliament Commissioner for Human Rights, all residents of Oleshky who wished to leave at the time of the humanitarian mission were evacuated.