Residents in Russian-Occupied Oleshky Resort to Eating Garden Weeds as Food Supplies Run Out

Residents of the Russian-occupied Ukrainian city of Oleshky are facing severe shortages of food, medicine and basic utilities, with some people reportedly turning to garden weeds for food as remaining supplies run out.

The BBC reported on September 24 that residents described Oleshky, in Ukraine’s southern Kherson region, as being cut off from regular food deliveries and facing continuing attacks. One resident told the BBC that the last food delivery to the city had arrived in May and that she was eating only once a day.

With vegetables grown during the summer now running out, residents have reportedly begun cooking garden weeds. Local Telegram groups have been discussing which plants can be eaten and how they should be prepared, while residents also exchange or barter whatever food they still have.

Oleshky has been under Russian occupation since 2022. Before Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, the city had a population of around 24,000. The Ukrainian government estimates that roughly 6,000 people remain in Oleshky and surrounding areas, including about 200 children. Other local estimates cited by Ukrainian media put the number of people remaining in the city itself lower.

The humanitarian situation has also been acknowledged by the Kremlin. On September 21, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said a “critical” situation had developed in Oleshky, including problems with supplies of food and medicine. Russia blamed Ukraine for difficulties in delivering supplies, while Ukrainian officials have accused Russian forces of blocking humanitarian access and evacuation efforts.

The United Nations Human Rights Monitoring Mission in Ukraine has previously documented shortages of food and medical care in Oleshky and nearby Hola Prystan. According to reporting cited by Ukrainian media, food deliveries had not reached Oleshky since May 26.

Residents also face a lack of basic infrastructure. The city has reportedly been without regular electricity, gas and water supplies since the destruction of the Kakhovka Dam in 2023. The dam’s destruction flooded large parts of the area and displaced thousands of people.

Travel outside Oleshky has become extremely dangerous because of mines, shelling and drone attacks. The BBC reported that four separate sources confirmed the deaths of two civilians who were returning with food from the nearby town of Radensk on September 20. The circumstances surrounding other reported deaths remain difficult to independently verify.

The UN Human Rights Monitoring Mission has recorded reports of at least 29 civilians killed and 54 injured in Oleshky and Hola Prystan during 2026, according to the BBC. Local volunteers have reported substantially higher figures, but the BBC said it could not independently verify those estimates.

The situation has prompted Ukrainian officials to call for international humanitarian assistance and an organized evacuation of civilians. The competing claims by Ukrainian and Russian authorities about responsibility for the lack of supplies remain disputed.

Sources
BBC News report via AOL
Reuters reporting cited by Shelter Media on the Kremlin’s statement
Ukrainian News Agency
The New Voice of Ukraine