Ukraine proposed to Russia a local ceasefire for the evacuation of 6,000 people from occupied Oleshky, — Lubinets

Ukraine proposed to Russia a local ceasefire for the evacuation of 6,000 people from occupied Oleshky, — Lubinets

Ukraine has proposed to Russia a local ceasefire to evacuate civilians from Oleshky in the occupied part of Kherson region, where a critical humanitarian situation is unfolding.

This was reported by Ombudsman Dmytro Lubinets.

“On May 15, we held negotiations. It’s not only about evacuation from Oleshky — we identified several settlements around the city. In total, about 6 thousand civilians are planned to be evacuated, including approximately 200 Ukrainian children. All technical issues have already been agreed upon. Now we await a specific date from the Russian side for the start of the ceasefire and the evacuation itself,” Lubinets said.

According to him, the city faces an acute shortage of water, food, and medicine, its infrastructure is destroyed, and civilian evacuation is practically impossible due to constant shelling.

Oleshky is located on the left bank of Kherson region, just beyond the destroyed Antonivskyi Bridge.

Back in April, the Red Cross reported that it “is negotiating with the authorities of both sides to obtain more complete information about the situation in Oleshky and the humanitarian needs of the local population.”

The Ukrainian side claims that Russian forces are blocking civilian evacuation and food deliveries. The “authorities” installed by Russia deny this, stating that the severe humanitarian conditions are caused by regular strikes by Ukrainian troops on the city.