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The Guardian - UK
The Guardian - UK
World
Peter Beaumont and Artem Mazhulin

‘Hell on earth’: last residents eat weeds to survive in Russian-occupied Oleshky

War-damaged buildings in Oleshky
Oleshky was once home to 24,000 people but only 2,000 or so remain. Photograph: Ukraine 34th Marine Brigade

The phone message sent out of Russian-occupied Oleshky was grimly matter-of-fact: food had finally run out for the 2,000 or so civilians, including 50 children, remaining in the city and its surrounding villages.

“We’re in Oleshky [and] we can’t get out. We’re going hungry … Right now, I’ve got absolutely nothing to eat,” read the message from a woman in the besieged city who was waiting to be evacuated by the occupying forces.

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