Inside Russian-occupied Oleshky: The first images from a city in humanitarian crisis as a temporary ceasefire allows civilian evacuations

A humanitarian mission led by Ukrainian Ombudsman Dmytro Lubinets and Russian human rights commissioner Yana Lantratova has arrived in Oleshky, a town in the Kherson region occupied by the Russian army. This is the first time a Ukrainian official of such high rank has visited territory occupied by Russia. Representatives of Russia and Ukraine reported on the morning of October 30 that the evacuation of civilians had begun and that humanitarian aid was being distributed in the city. Journalists, including well-known Ukrainian photographer Evgeniy Maloletka, were also able to enter the city alongside the delegations from Moscow and Kyiv. See what life looks like in the city, where the two sides have held their fire for several days.At Meduza, we are committed to transparency about our use of artificial intelligence in the newsroom. The story you’re reading was written by one of our living, breathing journalists and translated from Russian using an AI model configured to follow our strict editorial standards. This translation process is the result of extensive testing and refinements to ensure our English-language coverage is timely and accurate. A Meduza editor reviews every draft before publication.If you find any errors in this translation, please contact us at [email protected].To read Meduza’s exclusive content in English, please subscribe to our newsletter.