White House says Melania Trump brokered truce for Ukraine city 'on brink of disaster'

JUST IN: White House says Melania Trump brokered a ceasefire in the Russian-occupied Ukrainian city of Oleshky, 'on the brink of disaster', where residents had resorted to eating garden weeds to survive. Both Russia and Ukraine confirm the deal to evacuate residents and deliver aid.

Melania Trump has brokered a ceasefire in a Ukrainian city.

The White House says the First Lady worked directly with Russian and Ukrainian leadership to secure a localised truce in Oleshky, a Russian-occupied city it calls on the brink of disaster. President Trump credited her initiative himself, and you can see him here.

Oleshky has been held by Russia since the first days of the invasion. It sits trapped between Ukrainian positions across the Dnipro River and Russian forces to the east. Residents have been without gas or electricity since 2023, the roads are mined, and some people have been surviving on garden weeds. Both sides say their guns go quiet at two in the morning GMT on 27 October, so residents can be evacuated and aid can finally get in.

Nobody has said how long the ceasefire lasts. For the people still in Oleshky, it only needs to last long enough to get them out.

This is Liu Yang, reporting for HIT.