After years trapped under the iron grip of Russian occupation, hundreds of Ukrainian civilians have finally reached safety, describing their ordeal in the front-line city of Oleshky as nothing short of hell. The evacuees, who arrived in Chernihiv on Saturday, endured years of constant drone attacks, missile strikes, and a total collapse of basic supplies.
For those left in the city, the situation became so dire that residents were forced to forage for garden weeds to avoid starvation, while others risked their lives navigating active minefields just to secure food.
The harrowing evacuation was made possible by a humanitarian ceasefire in the Kherson region, providing a brief window for thousands to escape the territory seized by Russian forces during the 2022 invasion. Many of the survivors arrived in a state of extreme exhaustion, with some elderly residents requiring stretchers for transport.
Despite the relief of reaching safety, the evacuees now face the daunting task of rebuilding their lives from scratch, with many having lost their homes to fire and destruction during the occupation.
While these families have successfully fled the Russian front, they remain deeply concerned for the thousands of civilians still trapped behind enemy lines in Oleshky, where the threat of violence remains a daily reality.
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