# Hundreds flee years of hardship in occupied Oleshky through ceasefire window

- URL: https://talkfuse.com/story/we-came-back-from-hell-say-ukrainians-after-years-in-russia-occupied-frontline-city/
- Published: 2026-10-31T21:32:30+00:00
- Original publisher: BBC World (publisher lean: Centre)
- Original article: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cqglw3k7djp1o?at_medium=RSS&at_campaign=rss
- Topics: Culture, Europe, Food, World

## Key points

- Residents describe severe shortages and dangerous efforts to find food.
- A ceasefire window enabled hundreds to leave Oleshky.
- Thousands may still be in the occupied city and nearby areas.

## Summary

New accounts from evacuees describe residents in Russian-occupied Oleshky risking mines to find food, with some people surviving on cooked garden weeds. Hundreds have now reached northern Ukraine after a brief ceasefire enabled them to leave, but many others remain in the isolated city.

Oleshky was seized by Russian forces in February 2022 and is surrounded by the Dnipro River and Russian-held territory; shelling and drone attacks made escape dangerous. Up to 6,000 people, including 200 children, were believed to remain in the city and surrounding area. A four-hour evacuation window on Friday provided 25 buses for up to 750 people, some of whom arrived weak or on stretchers, while others were reunited with relatives; they now face finding homes and work.

## Coverage

- [BBC World: Hundreds flee years of hardship in occupied Oleshky through ceasefire window](https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cqglw3k7djp1o?at_medium=RSS&at_campaign=rss)
- [Daily Mail: Tears as Ukrainians evacuated from Russian-occupied Oleshky finally set foot on home soil after Melania Trump ceasefire](https://www.dailymail.com/news/article-16254905/Tears-Ukrainians-evacuated-Russian-occupied-Oleshky-finally-step-foot-home-soil-Melania-Trump-ceasefire.html?ns_mchannel=rss&ns_campaign=1490&ito=1490)

---
Summarised by TalkFuse (https://talkfuse.com/). Quote the original publisher for the reporting and link this page for the summary and discussion.