Follow-Up: Planes Carrying Evacuees From Oleshky Land in Belarus, Bound for Ukraine
Three planes carrying residents evacuated from the Russian-controlled Ukrainian town of Oleshky landed at Gomel airport in Belarus, the Belta state news agency reported on Saturday.
The evacuees, who wish to leave for Ukraine, travelled by bus via the Crimean peninsula to the Russian town of Anapa before flying to Belarus, and will proceed to Ukraine via a border crossing, Belta said.
The residents had been evacuated by bus on Friday as part of a joint relief operation by the opposing sides — the first of its kind in four years and eight months of war — and were described as starving and exhausted. Oleshky sits on the left bank of the Dnipro River, across from Kherson, and has been under Russian control since 2022; its remaining residents are mostly elderly. A local ceasefire brokered by U.S. First Lady Melania Trump took effect in late October to allow aid deliveries and evacuations, and is scheduled to end on the evening of November 1, as GSM reported earlier.
The United Nations has said it is not involved in the evacuation itself but is providing humanitarian assistance on the Ukrainian side of the front line to evacuees who arrive there. U.N. emergency relief coordinator Tom Fletcher said on October 30 that people who wish to leave must be able to do so safely and voluntarily. According to Reuters.
Related: Follow-Up: Ukraine: Oleshky Ceasefire Holds as Two Aid Vehicles Come Under Drone Attack
Source: GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 图：乌克兰 Kherson 的 Dnipro 河清晨景色（资料图）——Oleshky 位于河对岸左岸。照片：Visem，CC BY-SA 4.0，经 Wikimedia Commons。 / The Dnipro River at Kherson, Ukraine, in the morning (file photo) — Oleshky lies on the opposite left bank. Photo by Visem, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
- 2026-10-23First Lady Melania Trump Secures Localized Russia-Ukraine Ceasefire for Oleshky: Truce for Aid and Evacuations Starts October 29
- 2026-10-24Follow-Up: Kremlin Confirms Oleshky Ceasefire Deal; Russian and Ukrainian Militaries Working on Implementation Dates
- 2026-10-24Follow-up: Oleshky Ceasefire Dates Diverge: Russian and Ukrainian Militaries Say Silence From October 27, White House Said October 29
- 2026-10-26Follow-Up: Russia Says Ukraine Hit Oleshky With 18 Artillery Strikes and More Than 120 Drone Attacks in a Week Ahead of October 27 Ceasefire
- 2026-10-27Follow-up: Russia and Ukraine Begin Localised Ceasefire Around Oleshky on October 27 for Aid and Evacuations
- 2026-10-27Follow-up: Melania Trump Says Oleshky Ceasefire Has Expanded Across Kherson Region, Two Days Ahead of Schedule
- 2026-10-31Ukraine: Oleshky Ceasefire Holds as Two Aid Vehicles Come Under Drone Attack
- 2026-10-31Follow-Up: Planes Carrying Evacuees From Oleshky Land in Belarus, Bound for UkraineThis story
