Ceasefire Ends in Kherson as Strikes Resume Across Ukraine
Local truce concluded Sunday night, allowing evacuation of Oleshky while Russian drone attacks targeted energy grids and schools in other regions.
By Ryan Davidson ·
A localized ceasefire between Ukraine and Russia ended Sunday evening in Kherson, marking the conclusion of a limited truce that began Tuesday. The pause in fighting allowed for the evacuation of the front-line city of Oleshky and provided a brief respite for civilians in the region. Officials in Kherson reported that residents remained calm on the final day of the agreement, even as they prepared for the return of hostilities.
The White House stated that U.S. First Lady Melania Trump helped broker the agreement. The truce began early Tuesday and was scheduled to end Sunday night. During this period, a joint humanitarian operation evacuated residents from Oleshky, a city that had been besieged for years. When the truce started, an estimated 2,000 civilians were in Oleshky. They could choose to move to Ukrainian or Russian controlled territory, or stay with new supplies of food and medicine. Exact numbers of those who remained were not released to protect the safety of those who stayed behind.
Despite the local pause, aerial attacks continued elsewhere in the country. President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said on Sunday that Russia was targeting Ukraine's energy systems before winter. He reported that hundreds of thousands of families lost power overnight. Zelenskyy noted on social media that the intensity of strikes was extremely high because Russia was trying to exploit Ukraine's shortage of ballistic missile interceptors.
In Kherson, life continued amid the uncertainty. Oleksandr Knyha, head of the Kherson Regional Academic Music and Drama Theater, told his audience not to be afraid. The theater performs every weekend and plans to continue next week, even as local officials warn that Russian forces have moved more weapons and personnel into the area. Knyha said the company has worked on the front line for four years and has never canceled a performance. The staff now operates from a basement and is building an additional bomb shelter. About 100 of the 120 staff members remain in Kherson, and none have evacuated.
Costume maker Alla Vasylenko, 58, said the silence of the truce was frightening. She believes the situation will return to how it was before the ceasefire. Vasylenko has no plans to leave because she has 10 dogs and lacks the funds for travel. She said the trip would cost 30,000 to 50,000 hryvnias, or about $650 to $1,080. She said she will stay until the left bank of the region is liberated.
Strikes continued in other regions on the final day of the ceasefire. A Russian drone hit the grounds of a vocational school in the Vinnytsia region, killing three people, including a 13-year-old girl. Four others were wounded, including two 5-year-old girls and a 16-year-old boy. Regional authorities said drone attacks also targeted the Kyiv region for a second day, wounding a woman and damaging homes and energy infrastructure.
Ukraine's air force reported that Moscow attacked with 433 drones overnight, destroying or suppressing 371 of them. In Russia, more than 100 Ukrainian drones were shot down over the Nizhny Novgorod region. Local Governor Gleb Nikitin said an industrial building in the town of Kstovo sustained significant damage. Russian media reported that the attack started a fire at the Kstovo oil refinery. Local officials later limited gasoline sales in the region after lines formed at gas stations. Diesel sales were not affected.
Zelenskyy said Kyiv also struck a factory making missile components and air defense facilities in Russia's Rostov region. He wrote that Ukraine is defending itself against Russian aggression and working to reduce Russia's capability to continue it.
