Food supplies are completely gone. The remaining civilians in Russian-occupied Oleshky, just across the Dnipro River from Kherson, are boiling purslane weeds and surviving on a single bowl of potato-free soup a day. Once home to 24,000 people, the southern Ukrainian city now holds only about 2,000 residents, including roughly 50 children, trapped under relentless drone surveillance and dense minefields.
If you are looking at headlines about the crumbling infrastructure and humanitarian crisis in southern Ukraine, you're likely wondering how people are holding on—or why evacuations have stalled entirely. The reality on the ground is grim, brutal, and largely hidden behind a wall of military restrictions and constant aerial combat. Also making waves in this space: What The Major Terror Arrests Near A Key Uk Air Base Actually Mean.
Why Oleshky Became a Ghost Town
Before the war, Oleshky was an agricultural hub. Residents grew vegetables in local plots, supplying produce locally and across Crimea and Kherson. Today, those same plots are battlegrounds, and the infrastructure is non-existent. There's no electricity, no working ATMs, and no cash flow.
According to Tetiana Hasanenko, head of the Oleshky military administration, supply lines began breaking down late last year. The density of landmines grew exponentially. Vehicles attempting to bring aid were regularly hit by mines or targeted directly by drones. By May, the last regular trickle of food stopped altogether. Further details into this topic are detailed by NBC News.
Frontline dynamics have only worsened the situation. Ukraine's summer drone campaign against Russian supply lines squeezed food availability for occupying troops. Consequently, desperate Russian soldiers have been documented raiding civilian yards, digging up remaining potatoes, onions, and garlic, and stripping elderly residents of their stored provisions.
The Human Cost of Isolation
The physical toll on the remaining population is staggering. Text messages smuggled out of the city paint a harrowing picture. One resident who evacuated or managed to send word noted dropping from 110kg down to 67kg, warning that a lack of protein-rich food is becoming fatal.
Beyond starvation, daily life is dictated by constant fear. Drones hover overhead constantly, making even basic movement lethal. Human bodies are sometimes left where they fall because recovering them risks drawing drone attacks, leaving remains exposed in streets and hospital basements.
Military authorities in Kherson recently attempted a massive airdrop, utilizing drones to deliver about four tonnes of food, water, and medical supplies across 100 drop points. However, local officials report that Russian forces frequently intercept these packages or arrest civilians who manage to retrieve them. Moscow and Kyiv trade blame over who targets humanitarian convoys, but the net result for the civilians trapped inside remains identical: extreme deprivation.
Are Civilians Being Used as Human Shields?
Ukrainian officials argue that the occupying forces are intentionally dragging their feet on evacuations to deter a potential Ukrainian counterattack across the river from Kherson. Keeping civilians in place effectively creates a buffer zone.
Meanwhile, statements from Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha at the UN General Assembly have pressed for international pressure to force humanitarian corridors open, accusing Russia of deliberately trying to starve the population. On the other side, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov has deflected blame, claiming Ukrainian forces block humanitarian access from their end.
Whatever the political maneuvering, the civilians caught in the middle face an increasingly fatal winter. With cellars flooded from the 2023 Kakhovka dam collapse and winter fast approaching, foraging for edible weeds won't be enough to keep people alive.
If you want to track how humanitarian organizations and local administrations are responding, keep an eye on updates from the Kherson regional military administration and international monitoring groups tracking eastern and southern European frontlines. Supporting verified humanitarian funds operating near the Dnipro River remains the most direct way to aid displaced families escaping the region.
