Evacuees from the Russian-occupied city of Oleshky were reunited with their families on Saturday after crossing into Ukrainian-held territory. The rescue operation began Friday under a truce that the source describes as the most significant since Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
Evacuees stepped off buses at the Ukrainian-Belarusian border, where relatives and volunteers from the Red Cross, Médecins Sans Frontières and World Central Kitchen greeted them. Residents of nearby villages lined the highway waving flags and torches.
Tetiana Leonidivna, 71, thanked Ukrainian soldiers who helped her flee. "We love them, we love them," she said through tears. "We know that they are protecting us."
Ivan Yevhenovych, 48, described months of drone attacks and little remaining food in Oleshky. He said landmines or drone strikes were killing residents every day.
An estimated 2,000 people remained in Oleshky when the truce began. The source reports that they could choose evacuation to Ukrainian- or Russian-held territory, or stay with replenished supplies.
Ukrainian authorities have not said how many residents left Oleshky and have restricted details of the route. Melania Trump posted on social media that the convoy could safely evacuate more than 750 people. The White House said she helped broker the localised deal. Pope Leo XIV urged both sides to allow aid and evacuations.
Ukraine's human rights ombudsman, Dmytro Lubinets, called the mission an important moment. He said evacuees ranged in age from just over one year old to 94, and that they brought pets, including dogs, cats, a parrot and a raccoon.
Russia's human rights commissioner, Yana Lantratova, said both sides agreed to conduct regular humanitarian missions in and around Oleshky. Lubinets did not mention this in his remarks. Lantratova said some evacuees who chose Russian-occupied territory were taken to a shelter in Simferopol, in Crimea, which Moscow annexed in 2014.
Separately, the Russian defence ministry said its forces shot down 433 Ukrainian drones overnight. Zelenskyy said Moscow launched drone attacks on energy and railway infrastructure, leaving 280,000 households in Dnipro and Kyiv regions without power.