Ukrainian Evacuees Reunite With Families After Years Trapped in Oleshky

Families shed tears of joy as evacuees from the Russian-occupied city of Oleshky crossed from Belarus into the Chernihiv region of Ukraine, ending years of separation caused by the war.

Emotional Reunions

Sisters Dasha and Anya Palii ran across the tarmac to embrace their father, Mykhailo, after three years of fearing they would never see him again. Their mother, Zhanna, held his face as they reunited. Elderly residents, some so weak they needed stretchers, wheelchairs, or crutches, arrived in a convoy that included as many ambulances as coaches. Before the evacuation, residents had survived for years without food, water, or electricity by cooking garden weeds.

The Evacuation Route

Evacuees traveled through Russian-occupied territory to southern Russia, flew to Belarus, and drove across Ukraine's northern border. Ukraine's human rights ombudsman, Dmytro Lubinets, stated that the oldest evacuee was 94 and the youngest was one year old. A humanitarian ceasefire in the Kherson region, brokered with the efforts of US First Lady Melania Trump, allowed the road out to be cleared of mines. A convoy of 25 buses carrying up to 750 people left the town on Friday. Lubinets and his Russian counterpart, Yana Lantratova, traveled to Oleshky together, making Lubinets the first Ukrainian official to visit Russian-occupied parts of Ukraine since the war started. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky thanked Melania Trump and noted that all evacuees will receive government assistance.

Context

Oleshky is a frontline city in Ukraine's Kherson region that had a pre-war population of 24,000 people. The area suffered severe devastation following Russia's full-scale invasion in February 2022, leaving many residents trapped due to mined routes, destroyed bridges, and active combat zones.