A humanitarian crisis is unfolding in Russian-occupied southern Ukraine, the UN Human Rights Monitoring Mission in Ukraine has warned. In a new report released on June 25, UN officials say thousands of Ukrainian civilians are currently trapped by hostilities in frontline areas of the occupied Kherson region, where they face severe risks to their lives, food shortages, and a lack of medical assistance.
The crisis is centered on the city of Oleshky, which is located close to the left bank of the Dnipro River and directly across the river from regional capital Kherson. Oleshky has been under Russian occupation since the very first day of the full-scale invasion in February 2022, but the humanitarian situation has deteriorated sharply during the past six months. From a pre-war population of 24,000, approximately two thousand mostly elderly residents remain.
With all routes in and out of Oleshky heavily mined and deadly Russian drones operating throughout the area, the city and nearby settlements are effectively cut off from the outside world. Anyone who attempts to evacuate must travel along what locals have dubbed as “the road of death” due to the high risk of encountering drones or landmines.
