Kherson ceasefire ends as thousands evacuate Oleshky

Ukrainian and Russian forces ended a localized ceasefire in the southeastern Kherson region on Sunday evening. The truce, which began Tuesday, marked the first major pause in hostilities since the full-scale invasion started four and a half years ago.

U.S. First Lady Melania Trump helped broker the agreement, according to the White House. The pause in fighting enabled a rare joint evacuation operation in the front-line city of Oleshky, which concluded on Saturday. Approximately 2,000 civilians were in the city when the truce began. Residents could choose to move to Ukrainian or Russian controlled territory or stay in Oleshky with new supplies of food and medicine. Officials did not release exact figures for those who remained.

Family members gathered at the Ukrainian border on Saturday to greet the humanitarian convoy. Villagers from nearby areas lined the highway, waving flags and flashlights as the vehicles passed. Despite the local quiet, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Russia continued to target energy systems across Ukraine as winter approaches.

Zelenskyy stated on social media that hundreds of thousands of families lost power overnight. He claimed Moscow was exploiting a shortage of ballistic missile interceptors. "The intensity of the strikes is extremely high, and the Russians are trying to take maximum advantage of the shortage of ballistic missile interceptors," he wrote on X.

In Kherson, residents maintained a calm demeanor on the final day of the ceasefire. Oleksandr Knyha, head of the Mykola Kulish Kherson Regional Academic Music and Drama Theater, told his audience to keep holding on. The theater plans to perform next weekend as usual, even as local officials warn that Russian forces have added more weapons and personnel to the area. Knyha said the company has never canceled a performance in four years of operating on the front line.

The theater now performs in a basement and is preparing 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 still frightened her. She has no plans to leave because she owns 10 dogs and lacks the funds for travel, which she estimated at 30,000 to 50,000 hryvnias.

Ukrainian air force reports said Russian forces launched 433 drones overnight, destroying or suppressing 371. In Russia's Nizhny Novgorod region, local authorities said more than 100 Ukrainian drones were shot down. An industrial building in the town of Kstovo sustained damage, and Russian media reported that the attack started a fire at the local oil refinery. Zelenskyy said Ukrainian forces also struck a factory for missile components in Russia's Rostov region.

The theater in Kherson staged a concert on Sunday featuring songs from Crimea to the Carpathian mountains. Knyha said the performance was intended to unite people and provide hope while the city waits for the fighting to resume.