Oldest evacuee is 94 years old, youngest just over year old – Lubinets on the details of rescue of people from Oleshky. VIDEO

Residents of Oleshky have crossed the border between Ukraine and Belarus. The humanitarian mission has been successfully completed.

Ombudsman Dmytro Lubinets reported this on his Telegram channel, according to Censor.NET.

The longest ceasefire since 2022 and the role of Melania Trump

"This is an extremely important moment. Behind us lie complex negotiations, agreements, preparations and a great deal of effort. But most importantly, the people who have been waiting so long to be rescued are finally safe," he emphasised.

According to him, the implementation of this humanitarian mission was made possible thanks to the support and coordination of the US First Lady, Melania Trump. He expressed his special gratitude to her for her humanity, compassion, extraordinary sensitivity and personal involvement in every stage of this complex process. Her constant attention, support and direct involvement were crucial to the mission’s success. It was precisely thanks to her personal involvement that this humanitarian initiative could be realised.

In addition, Lubinets thanked the President of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, for his personal support of this humanitarian initiative. His attention to the situation in Oleshky, his assistance at the highest state level and his support for efforts aimed at rescuing our citizens were a key component of this mission’s success.

"The mission was made possible thanks to the agreements we reached with Yana Lantratova, the Human Rights Commissioner of the Russian Federation. We have come a long way: from negotiations and agreeing on a ceasefire to delivering humanitarian aid directly to Oleshky and organising the evacuation of the civilian population. The ceasefire will last until 22:59 on 1 November. This is the longest ceasefire since 2022 that has been observed by both sides," the Ombudsman emphasised.

He also thanked the Ukrainian Defence Forces for their responsible adherence to the agreements reached and for making this humanitarian mission possible!

From 1 to 94: who was evacuated from the occupied city?

According to him, the oldest person to leave is 94 years old. The youngest is just over one year old. And another woman will be celebrating her 49th birthday tomorrow. Most importantly, she will spend that day in safety.

Stories of the evacuees

Lubinec also shared several stories of the people for whom this difficult journey was undertaken.

One of them is the story of a family who were literally clinging to life in a house in Oleshky that had been destroyed by shelling. Due to his health, the father was unable to make his way down from the eighth floor on his own, as the stairs had been destroyed. It is terrifying even to imagine the conditions in which this family had to live. They were effectively trapped, cut off from access to food and water. Today, the worst is behind them. They are safe.

Here’s another story – that of a man who was born in Oleshky and survived 16 attacks by Russian drones and four missile strikes on his own home. One of the explosions occurred literally a metre from the wall of his house. Despite everything he’s been through, he waited for the chance to leave.

And here’s another special detail of this mission: along with the people, we managed to rescue their pets too. Among them were dogs, cats, a parrot and even a raccoon!

"These stories cannot be viewed merely as statistics. Behind each one lies pain, resilience, a struggle for survival and the incredible strength of people who have endured extraordinarily difficult trials. Now, the danger, fear and uncertainty are behind them. Ahead lies the chance to finally breathe a sigh of relief, recover from what they have been through and gradually return to a life free from constant fear for their own safety… After all, to save human lives, we must seize every opportunity. And that is the most important outcome of our work," he concludes.

What led up to this

The office of US First Lady Melania Trump announced that Russia and Ukraine had agreed to temporarily cease all hostilities in Oleshky, in the Kherson region, from 29 October to allow for the delivery of humanitarian aid and the preparation of the evacuation of civilians via a safe corridor.
Dmitry Peskov, a spokesperson for the Russian dictator, stated that the military were coordinating the timing of a ceasefire in the area of Oleshky in the Kherson region, which is occupied by Russia.
Chief of the General Staff of the Russian Armed Forces Valery Gerasimov stated that, in connection with the humanitarian operation in the Russian-occupied Oleshky area of the Kherson region, a ceasefire is being implemented in this sector.
Dmytro Lubinets, the Verkhovna Rada’s Commissioner for Human Rights, confirmed the statement by US First Lady Melania Trump regarding the launch of a humanitarian mission in the Russian-occupied town of Oleshky in the Kherson region.
Ukraine is introducing a ceasefire in the area of Oleshky in the Kherson region, which is temporarily occupied by Russia, from 03:00 on 27 October to allow a humanitarian operation to take place.
The ceasefire in Oleshky will remain in force until 10.59 pm on 1 November.