// BBC WORLD NEWS — MONDO
Residents leave devastated Russian-occupied Oleshky as evacuation corridor opens
The evacuation of the Russian-occupied Ukrainian city of Oleshky is under way, Russian and Ukrainian authorities have confirmed.
A ceasefire, brokered by US First Lady Melania Trump, has been in force in the entire frontline region of Kherson since Tuesday, allowing for the road out of Oleshky to be demined.
Residents of Oleshky who wished to leave had a four-hour window to do so. A convoy of 25 buses was brought in to allow up to 750 people to leave the town until 14:00 (12:00 GMT), along with ambulances for people with limited mobility.
Several hundred people are understood to have decided to stay, despite the widespread devastation and the lack of gas, electricity and running water.
"Everyone who wishes to leave Oleshky will be given the opportunity to do so safely," Ukraine's human rights ombudsman Dmytro Lubinets said.
"At the same time, those who decide to remain will be able to stay and will receive all the necessary humanitarian assistance."
Ukrainian territory lies 5km (3.1miles) from Oleshky, but the evacuees will first have to travel into Russian-occupied territory and then to the southern Russian city of Anapa.
They will board a Russian government plane to Gomel in Belarus, and then drive across the border into Ukraine's Chernihiv region.
Others are expected to choose to stay in Russian-occupied territory.
Oleshky residents have a four-hour window to board buses to be evacuated to either Russia or Ukraine