Stories
Winter of Hunger Looms for Residents Trapped in Russian-Occupied Oleshky
- •Residents in the Russian-occupied Ukrainian city of Oleshky face severe shortages of food, medicine, electricity, and running water as winter approaches.
- •The city's population has dwindled to fewer than 2,000 people, with many enduring extreme conditions, overflowing morgues, and dangerous escape routes dubbed the road of death.
- •Ukraine and Russia continue to blame each other for the humanitarian crisis, while ceasefire and evacuation agreements remain elusive.
- •Ukrainian military drones have delivered over 7 tons of emergency food and medical supplies across the Dnipro River to help surviving residents.
Key Questions Answered
Residents in Oleshky face severe shortages of food, medicine, electricity, heat, and running water, with the population dropping to fewer than 2,000. The local hospital and morgue have been overwhelmed with bodies due to a lack of electricity, and the UN notes that the last regular food delivery by road occurred on May 26.
The 20-kilometer route between Oleshky and Radensk is heavily mined, dotted with burned-out cars, and monitored by drones, causing many casualties among those attempting to escape. The exiled head of the city's military administration noted that corpses lie along this path and no one is able to take them away.
Pope Leo XIV urged President Vladimir Putin during a phone call to arrange a ceasefire allowing food and medicine deliveries and safe civilian evacuations, with the Kremlin expressing readiness to cooperate. However, formal agreements between Russia and Ukraine remain elusive due to a lack of verifiable security guarantees.
