People board and alight a minibus at a bus stop on a road covered with anti-drone netting during a temporary ceasefire in the Kherson region of the southern Ukrainian city of Kherson during Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, October 30, 2026. (Photo by Roman PILIPEY/AFP via Getty Images)
Roman Pilipi | AFP | Getty Images
Four planes carrying evacuated residents from the Russian-controlled Ukrainian town of Oreshki landed in Belarus on Saturday, Belarus’ Belta state news agency and a senior Ukrainian official said.
On Friday, hundreds of hungry and exhausted residents left the town of Oreshki during a local ceasefire supported by the US. The ceasefire is the first of its kind and the longest humanitarian ceasefire in the war, which is now in its fifth year.
“The fourth and final plane has landed in Gomel,” said David Arahamia, Ukraine’s top peace negotiator and close ally of President Volodymyr Zelenskiy.
“In a few hours, all Ukrainian nationals evacuated from Oreshki along with the Ukrainian delegation will arrive on Ukrainian territory.”
Belta news agency later reported that a convoy of buses carrying residents departed from the airport in Gomel, in southeastern Belarus, near the border with Ukraine.
Evacuees leaving for Ukraine had to take a complicated route to leave Oreshki, as the front line is only a few kilometers away.
Berta said the group would first travel by bus through Crimea to the Russian town of Anapa, then fly to Belarus and from there cross a border crossing into Ukraine.
The local ceasefire in Oreshky was achieved thanks to the mediation efforts of US first lady Melania Trump and the involvement of the Pope. According to Ukrainian and Russian officials, the ceasefire has continued without violation since Tuesday. This allowed them to clear mines from roads and bring food, medicine, and other supplies into town.
Supply routes to Oreshkii have been cut off by fighting and drones. Some residents say hundreds of people went hungry after food deliveries stopped in May.
It was not immediately clear how many people decided to leave Oreshkii and how many chose to remain in town. Residents of Oreshki had the option of traveling to Russia or returning to Ukraine.
Ukrainian authorities have announced that about 1,700 people remain in Oreshki, out of a prewar population of about 24,000. Many of the residents were elderly or sick, according to residents interviewed by Reuters.
