Kherson Truce Expires as Russian Strikes Leave Thousands Without Power
Humanitarian pause in the occupied city ends Sunday night, while overnight attacks on energy infrastructure disrupt life across four Ukrainian regions.
By Ana Castro ·
The humanitarian ceasefire in the Kherson region will end at 22:59 local time on Sunday night, concluding a brief pause that allowed civilians to escape the Russian-occupied city of Oleshky. While the truce held in that specific sector since its implementation last week, fighting continued elsewhere in Ukraine. Russian forces struck energy infrastructure in four regions overnight on Saturday, leaving hundreds of thousands of homes without electricity.
The localized pause began on Tuesday and was originally limited to Oleshky. It was later expanded to cover the wider Kherson area. US First Lady Melania Trump and Pope Leo helped broker the agreement. Residents of Oleshky, which has been under Russian control since February 2022, faced severe shortages of food, water, and power. Many residents resorted to cooking garden weeds to survive before the evacuation routes opened.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky stated that Russia aimed to exploit Ukraine's shortage of ballistic missile interceptors. He described the intensity of the strikes over the past week as extremely high. Zelensky noted that Ukraine has communicated its need for Patriot missiles to the United States, Europe, and other partners every day. He called for more immediate aid while thanking existing supporters for their commitments.
A separate overnight strike in the Vinnytsia region killed two people, including a 13-year-old girl, according to the State Emergency Service of Ukraine. In the Dnipropetrovsk region, repair crews worked throughout the day to restore connections. By early evening, most customers had power back, but more than 60,000 residents remained without electricity, the governor reported.
Emergency power cuts are now common across the country due to regular attacks on the grid. In the capital, Kyiv, electricity is cut off for most of the day, and water supplies are disrupted. Ukraine also targeted a major missile fuel producer in Russia's Rostov region. Zelensky said the strike caused a fire and damaged four production facilities.
Evacuations from Oleshky proceeded despite the city being trapped between the Dnipro river and Russian forces. Routes out were mined and subject to drone attack. Ukrainian military positions sit just 5km from the city, but evacuees had to travel through Russian-occupied territory to southern Russia. They then flew to Belarus before being driven across Ukraine's northern border.
Dmytro Lubinets, Ukraine's human rights ombudsman, said the oldest evacuee was 94 years old and the youngest was one. Emotional reunions took place on Saturday between family members who had not seen each other for years. The truce ends Sunday night, returning the region to active front line conditions.
