Evacuations Begin in Occupied Ukrainian City Under Ceasefire Brokered by Melania Trump

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Ukrainian and Russian humanitarian delegations began evacuating residents from the Russian-occupied city of Oleshky on Friday, CBS News reports, under a temporary local ceasefire brokered last week by first lady Melania Trump. The truce runs from Oct. 28 to Nov. 1. Pope Leo also pressed for a pause in the fighting.

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Oleshky, in Ukraine’s Kherson region, has been occupied by Russia since the first days of the war. Russian strikes on the surrounding area have kept food, water and medicine from reaching the city for months. Local authorities say about 2,000 people remain.

The convoy included 25 buses, and ambulances arrived with food and medicine.

Evacuees are to travel through Russia and Belarus before arriving back in Ukraine on Saturday. Ukraine’s human rights ombudsman, Dmytro Lubinets, said anyone who chooses to stay will receive humanitarian support.

Not everyone trusts the arrangement.

A Ukrainian lawmaker told CBS News he believes Russia agreed in order to look like a reliable negotiating partner, and a Ukrainian journalist warned that Russian forces could use such missions as cover to move troops forward.

Fighting continued elsewhere. On Thursday, a Russian strike on a train station in Dnipro killed at least 14 people.

Click here to read the full story on CBS News

About Post Author

Anthony Smith

Anthony Smith started writing about politics while in college, and that "interest" has turned into a career. He has now been covering politics for more than two decades, and has solidified his place as a fair-minded analyst of today's political world.