Hundreds evacuated from Oleshky during local truce in Ukraine as Russian strikes kill dozens of civilians
Hundreds of people were evacuated during a local truce from the Russian-occupied city of Oleshky in southern Ukraine; the US First Lady cites nearly 800. In the same week, Russian strikes in Dnipro, Komyshuvakha and Kharkiv killed or injured dozens.
In the 255th week of Russia's full-scale war in Ukraine, hundreds of people arrived in Ukrainian-held territory on Saturday after being evacuated during a local truce from the Russian-occupied city of Oleshky in the country's south, right next to the front line. The truce allowed civilians to be taken away from the fighting, while Russian attacks on Ukrainian towns and villages continued to claim civilian lives elsewhere.
Evacuation from Oleshky
Russia and Ukraine reportedly agreed not to disclose how many people were evacuated. However, US First Lady Melania Trump, who acted as mediator of the truce, said nearly 800 people were taken out of Oleshky. The exact number of evacuated pets is known: 105, four of them parrots.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said the Oleshky truce clearly shows that de-escalation measures are possible when Russia is placed in a position where it has to take steps to improve the situation.
Russian strikes on civilian sites
Last Thursday, a Russian drone strike on a railway station platform in the city of Dnipro killed 14 people. On Monday, Russian aircraft attacked a school in the village of Komyshuvakha in the Zaporizhzhia region, where humanitarian aid was being handed out. At least 33 people died, and around 50 are considered missing. A crater left by an aerial bomb now marks the site of the school.
On Tuesday night, an attack on a hospital in Kharkiv injured 73 people, and more than 200 patients had to be evacuated to other medical facilities.
