Oleshky evacuation: Melania Trump-brokered ceasefire rescues civilians from occupied Ukrainian city

Hundreds of civilians are being evacuated from the occupied Ukrainian city of Oleshky under a temporary ceasefire negotiated by US First Lady Melania Trump, ending months of severe deprivation. The operation began Friday after the city was cut off from food, power, and medicine. Oleshky, under Russian occupation since April 2022, has roughly 2,000 residents, including 50 children, trapped without basic supplies since September. Ukrainian officials report residents were forced to eat grass and weeds. The evacuation involves 25 buses carrying up to 750 people through Crimea and Belarus, with Ukrainian ombudsman Dmytro Lubinets personally escorting citizens. The ceasefire expires Sunday, and Russian forces remain entrenched in the city, raising Ukrainian concerns about resupply. While the deal marks a rare humanitarian breakthrough, a broader peace agreement remains unlikely as Moscow maintains maximalist demands on territory and sovereignty.