Oleshky Residents Left Without Aid, People Left Behind

Residents of Russian-occupied Oleshky in the Kherson region are not receiving humanitarian aid delivered during a recent evacuation mission, according to Tetiana Hasanenko, head of the Local Military Administration (MVA).In an interview with Ukrinform, Hasanenko said local authorities had received reports that the aid brought into the city was not reaching residents.JOIN US ON TELEGRAMFollow our coverage of the war on the @Kyivpost_official.Those who managed to receive assistance said they were given only a small amount of food, insufficient to last even a week.“As you can understand, we cannot verify what is happening there at the moment,” Hasanenko added.She also revealed why some residents had been unable to leave during the evacuation. Some were unaware that an evacuation was taking place because they were sheltering in basements without communication with the outside world.“Although there was a regime of silence, people in the community are in such a state that it is difficult for them to believe in anything. It is difficult to access what is happening around. After all, there was little reason for not shooting for a long time – people could not come to a conclusion about the evacuation,” Hasanenko said.Residents with limited mobility also remained in the city because they were not transported to the designated assembly point near the hospital. Hasanenko said people had expected Russian forces to take them there.Others were afraid to leave because they feared undergoing “filtration” – Russian screening and interrogation procedures. Some who eventually joined the evacuation convoy were so worried about what awaited them that they believed they might not survive the journey. Other Topics of Interest 128 Drones, 2 Missiles: Russia Strikes Ukraine, Killing Woman A second strike hit a postal terminal as firefighters worked in the Kharkiv region, while in the Odesa region, hits damaged energy and civilian infrastructure. “They left with the idea that it could be a ‘one-way trip,’ as they say. But they could not stay there at all, because death awaited them in either case. So they took a risk,” Hasanenko said.The evacuation convoy also picked up people who had been waiting along the highway. However, some women who had been waiting left on foot before the buses arrived, believing the convoy had already passed.Olekshy ceasefireA five-day ceasefire around Oleshky ended on Sunday evening, Nov. 1, after a humanitarian operation evacuated several hundred civilians.The operation began on Oct. 27 under an agreement between Ukraine and Russia, with the involvement of US First Lady Melania Trump and her team.Ukraine’s Parliamentary Commissioner for Human Rights, Dmytro Lubinets, said on Monday, Nov. 2 that Melania Trump’s team had played an important role in securing the agreement and coordinating the evacuation.He added that representatives of Ukraine, Russia, and the US had signed copies of the ceasefire document, with Washington acting as a guarantor of the parties’ commitments.Most evacuees chose to travel to Ukrainian-controlled territory. According to Lubinets, Russia acknowledged that around 80% of those evacuated had opted to go to Ukraine. Kyiv Post sources familiar with the operation said fewer than 10 people chose to relocate to Russia, while several dozen sought to move to other Russian-occupied areas.The operation nevertheless raised concerns among Ukrainian military personnel who warned that Russian forces may have used the pause in fighting to rotate troops and move equipment along roads previously exposed to Ukrainian fire. Lubinets disputed reports of ceasefire violations, saying military equipment observed on the Russian side had been used exclusively for demining.Several hundred people, possibly as many as 1,000, reportedly remain in Oleshky, with some unwilling or unable to leave. Lubinets said humanitarian aid had been delivered to those who stayed and that similar evacuation operations could be organized monthly.Melania Trump is set to host Ukrainian and Russian officials at the White House on Thursday, Nov. 5 ahead of trilateral peace talks in Abu Dhabi next week.Russia plans to send presidential adviser Kirill Dmitriev and human rights ombudsman Yana Lantratova, while Lubinets has also confirmed he will attend.On Wednesday, Nov. 4, Zelensky awarded Melania Trump the Order of Princess Olha, First Class, recognizing her humanitarian work and role in securing a localized ceasefire around Oleshky in October. Her office also highlighted her efforts to help return Ukrainian children taken to Russia. Kyiv Post is Ukraine’s first and oldest English news organization, reporting since 1995. Its international reach – 90% of readers are outside of Ukraine – make it truly Ukraine’s global voice.