Ukraine FM says Russian-held town is a 'death trap' with starving residents, Zelensky says genocide
Oleshky had a pre-war population of 24,000 people and is now home to around 1,700 residents, including 47 children, according to the United Nations Human Rights Monitoring Mission in Ukraine.
Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha warned on Saturday that the Russian-held Ukrainian town of Oleshky is a death trap, with residents facing starvation. He implored international bodies to assist in evacuating the populace. The minister made his remarks on X/Twitter the day after Russian President Vladimir Putin, in a discussion with Pope Leo, agreed to assist in supplying vital necessities to the town in southern Ukraine's Kherson region.
Sybiha's town of Oleshky is grappling with a dire situation. The hospital is bereft of medicine, and numerous corpses are strewn across the streets or within homes, as the Russians prohibit the burial of the deceased. Families are struggling to survive on meager resources such as leftover garden vegetables, preserved foods, and even snails.
Ukraine has long been advocating for safe evacuation and humanitarian access. These pleas cannot be ignored any longer. The Kremlin acknowledged in September that Oleshky faced significant issues with food and medical supplies, attributing it to Russia's military efforts to address the problems. However, Ukraine's military has resorted to employing drones to deliver food and medicine to the beleaguered town twice.
International organizations, including the United Nations and the International Committee of the Red Cross, are urged by Sybiha to facilitate secure evacuation corridors and immediate humanitarian access. Oleshky, situated on the eastern side of the Dnipro River in the Kherson region, was swiftly occupied by Russian forces following the 2022 invasion. Subsequent Ukrainian counteroffensive operations have reclaimed considerable swathes of territory, including the city of Kherson.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy recently described the plight in Oleshky as genocide. Prior to the war, Oleshky boasted a pre-war population of 24,000 inhabitants, but now it is inhabited by approximately 1,700 residents, including 47 children, according to Danielle Bell, the head of the United Nations Human Rights Monitoring Mission in Ukraine.
Local prosecutors reported on Saturday that Russian forces launched aerial bombings on the city of Kherson, located on the opposite bank of the Dnipro River from Oleshky. The attack took the life of an ambulance driver and left 40 individuals injured.
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