The rescue of the residents of the Ukrainian front town of Oleshka is a small but remarkable success in this war. The new newspaper of Zurich.
The humanitarian operation to rescue the residents of the town on the Oleshka front, which was occupied by Russia, ended last weekend successfully. On Saturday, after a long journey, several hundred people arrived in the territory of Ukraine. "We have returned from hell," several of them told the Western media upon their arrival.
The photographs and videos mainly show elderly, emaciated people; Many could not hold back their tears. Some of them needed assistance getting out of their vehicle, including the severely disabled and amputees.
The small town of Olshki, which has been controlled by Russian soldiers since 2022, was almost completely destroyed during the war and has suffered from severe hunger in recent months.
A breakthrough was the agreement between Ukraine and Russia on a local ceasefire, which was mediated by the first lady of the USA, Melania Trump. The ceasefire, which came into effect on Tuesday, covered the entire Kherson region, which is divided between Ukraine and Russia, and was being observed with extraordinary rigor. In this way it was possible to clear the roads first and then begin the evacuation of Oleshki.
Although the evacuation operation affected only one settlement, its significance goes beyond the immediate humanitarian success. For the first time during this war, an armistice was reached that truly deserved the name and was not used for selfish military purposes.
According to the Ukrainian political scientist Vladimir Pesenko, this is an important precedent that should become a model for a ceasefire along the entire front line.
It is worth noting that in Olsheki's case, the warring parties still managed to create constructive cooperation. The Ukrainian Commissioner for Human Rights Dmitri Lubinc managed to arrive with his delegation in Oleshki and accompany his compatriots home through Russian territory.