Russia and Ukraine kept a six-day ceasefire to evacuate one town
It was arranged to let starving residents leave, and it required days just to clear mines from roads.
Reuters World News · Gen Z protests, Oleshky and a possible Democratic CongressRussia and Ukraine have kept a six-day local ceasefire to evacuate starving residents from a town in Ukraine's south under Russian control.
The pause is the longest local halt in combat since Moscow launched its full-scale invasion in 2022, and so far it has held without a single breach or violation, which is unusual in this war.
The ceasefire was reached after mediation by U.S. First Lady Melania Trump, with involvement from the Pope. Elena Hamash, who is following the story from Kyiv, said the length was no accident.
The evacuation is being carried out in stages, starting with clearing mines from roads, work that alone took several days.
Questions people ask
Why did the town need an evacuation?
Supply routes were cut by fighting and drones, and residents say food deliveries stopped months ago. That left hundreds of people facing hunger, with some families surviving for weeks on tiny shared rations of rice or buckwheat.
Why did evacuees take such a roundabout route to safety?
There is no safe direct road across the front line near the town. Evacuees therefore traveled by bus through Crimea to the Russian town of Anapa, then flew to Belarus before reentering Ukraine, a detour that avoids active fighting.
Could this ceasefire lead to a broader peace?
It is only a local arrangement for one relief operation, carried out in stages. Ukrainian officials hope it could become a model, but Russian officials have called it a special case, not a step toward wider peace talks.