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Evacuated residents of Oleshky in Russian-occupied Kherson Oblast, Ukraine, on Oct. 31 (local time). / EPA-Yonhap

Residents of Russian-occupied Oleshky in southern Ukraine returned to Ukrainian-controlled territory on Oct. 31 (local time) under a six-day humanitarian ceasefire.

The ceasefire was the first localized truce since Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022 and was brokered through the mediation of U.S. First Lady Melania Trump and the involvement of Pope Leo XIV, Reuters reported.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy expressed gratitude to the United States and Melania Trump for their mediation efforts and said all evacuated residents would receive the assistance they needed.

The residents departed Oleshky and traveled through Crimea and Anapa, Russia, to Belarus before arriving in the Chernihiv region of northern Ukraine by plane and bus that day. Ukrainian human rights ombudsman Dmytro Lubinets said the oldest returnee was 94 years old and the youngest was an infant just over a year old, but did not disclose the total number of returnees.

According to residents, fighting had cut off supply routes to Oleshky, halting food deliveries since May and leaving hundreds of residents suffering from hunger.

According to Russian and Ukrainian officials, the ceasefire had remained in effect without violations since Oct. 27. During this period, mines were cleared from major routes, and food and medical supplies were brought in. The ceasefire is scheduled to end on Nov. 1.

Some residents reportedly chose to remain in the area or travel to Russia. Oleshky had a population of 24,000 before the war, and an estimated 1,700 people remained there before the evacuation, Reuters reported.

Russian human rights commissioner Yana Lantratova said the two sides had agreed to continue regular humanitarian missions with Ukraine in the future.

Apart from the temporary suspension of hostilities on the Kherson front, fighting and drone attacks continued on other fronts.

Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said cooperation between the two countries' ombudsmen had gone smoothly but added that this was an individual case and should not be interpreted as an indication of progress in broader peace negotiations.

Negotiating delegations from the United States, Ukraine and Russia are scheduled to resume talks in Abu Dhabi in November after they were suspended in February following the outbreak of the war in Iran, Reuters reported.

                                                                                                           Lee Jeong-eun