Ukraine, Russia launch ‘new format’ for evacuating civilians from occupied territories, ombudsman says

Ukraine and Russia have agreed a weekly process to evacuate vulnerable civilians from Russian-occupied areas to Ukrainian-controlled territory, Ukraine’s human rights ombudsman Dmytro Lubinets said. The arrangement matters because Moscow had previously blocked efforts to set up a humanitarian corridor, leaving civilians to attempt dangerous journeys on their own.

The International Committee of the Red Cross is helping organise the evacuations, which are intended for older people, people with limited mobility and those needing medical care. Sixteen Ukrainians returned on 12 November, with requests coming particularly from Donetsk and Zaporizhzhia regions. The agreement was reached through talks between the two countries’ human rights commissioners; broader prisoner exchanges remain difficult, and Lubinets said 486 Ukrainian women are still held in Russian captivity.