Ukrainian Council of Churches asks Pope to help save occupied Oleshky from starvation

The Ukrainian Council of Churches and Religious Organisations (UCCRO) has reported a critical humanitarian situation in the occupied town of Oleshky in Kherson Oblast, where more than 6,000 people, including around 200 children, may still remain, according to various estimates.

Source: an appeal by the UCCRO

Details: The UCCRO said the last food supplies reached Oleshky in late May 2026. Residents of the city remain without sufficient food, drinking water, medicines and other essential aid.

The organisation said Russian troops are preventing people from leaving the city.

Oleshky is located near the front line, and civilians who remain there are constantly at risk of attacks and drone strikes. The city's critical infrastructure has been virtually destroyed, and there is no electricity or gas supply.

The UCCRO recalled that Oleshky also experienced large-scale flooding in 2023 after Russian forces destroyed the Kakhovka Hydroelectric Power Plant dam.

Quote: "The city of Oleshky, located in the territory of Ukraine temporarily occupied by Russian forces, is under a humanitarian blockade and is on the brink of a humanitarian catastrophe."

Details: The UCCRO appealed to Pope Leo XIV, the World Council of Churches, the World Evangelical Alliance, other religious leaders and human rights organisations, asking them to use all available means to prevent people from starving to death.

It also called on UN member states and the International Committee of the Red Cross to facilitate a humanitarian mission and the evacuation of Oleshky residents to Ukrainian-controlled territory.

The UCCRO stressed that Ukraine has repeatedly drawn international organisations' attention to the critical situation in the city and has attempted to negotiate the evacuation of civilians.

Background:

• On 16 September, Ukrainian Human Rights Commissioner Dmytro Lubinets said that Russia has for a long time refused to confirm whether it is ready to organise a humanitarian mission to evacuate civilians from Oleshky.
• The 34th Separate Marine Brigade posted footage of Oleshky, describing it as a city "the Russians have turned into a ghost".

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