European Parliament Vice-President Pina Picherno has gone on a hunger strike over the humanitarian catastrophe in Russian-occupied Oleshki in the Kherson region. She announced her decision on the social network X and called on the international community to draw attention to the situation of civilians in the town.
According to Picherno, thousands of residents of Oleshki are “trapped” and do not have regular access to food and medicine.
“The mines make escape extremely dangerous: whoever stays risks dying of hunger, and whoever tries to escape risks their lives. "To draw international attention to this emergency, I have declared a hunger strike," she said.Picherno called on citizens, organizations and institutions to join her initiative. She is demanding an immediate humanitarian ceasefire, the delivery of food and medicine, and the possibility for civilians who wish to leave the city to be safely evacuated.
About 6,000 people are waiting for evacuation
Ukrainian Ombudsman Dmytro Lubinets said that about 6,000 people, including approximately 200 children, should be evacuated from the temporarily occupied Oleshkiv municipality. The plan covers not only Oleshkiv itself, but also six other settlements in the area.
According to Lubinets, the evacuation should be carried out simultaneously from all settlements. He announced that the last issues surrounding the operation are being coordinated with the Russian side, including the conditions for the safe evacuation of civilians.
So far, no specific date has been set for the start of the organized evacuation. Picherno insists on the creation of a humanitarian corridor and a regime that would allow those who wish to leave the city.
There is a lack of electricity, gas and drinking water
The Times notes that the last regular food delivery to Oleshki arrived on May 26. The UNIAN article states that a resident who managed to reach the territory controlled by Ukraine in September described difficult conditions in the city.
According to her, there is no electricity, gas and drinking water in Oleshki, and medical care is limited to the lowest level. She also claims that the streets are littered with the bodies of civilians killed by landmines or drone strikes.
The woman also says that an unknown number of people died in their homes last winter, when temperatures dropped to minus 10 degrees. According to her account, their bodies have not yet been removed. This information was provided by an evacuated resident and is not presented as independently verified data.
Sources: unian.net, pravda.com.ua