Ukraine Warupdated 1h ago3 min read
Italian MEP Pina Picierno Hunger Strikes Over Humanitarian Crisis In Russian-Occupied Oleshky
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Italian MEP Pina Picierno began a hunger strike over Oleshky's humanitarian crisis. Oleshky is Russian-occupied with about 1,700 residents, down from 24,000.
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Oleshky hunger strike
Pina Picierno, an Italian MEP and vice-president in the EU parliament, went on hunger strike over the humanitarian crisis in Russian-occupied Oleshky in Ukraine. Picierno told EUobserver she was refusing to eat solid food to draw attention to the besieged Ukrainian town, which EU says is without access to food, medicine, clean water and basic care. Andrii Sybiha warned last Saturday (17 October) that the only route to escape from Oleshky is tapped with mines and rife with attack drones, and he urged the UN and International Red Cross to secure evacuation corridors and immediate humanitarian access.
Vatican mediation efforts included Pope Leo calling for Russian president Vladimir Putin to arrange a humanitarian ceasefire to allow in aid, as the Vatican said Oleshky is besieged and trapped civilians face starvation. EUobserver said Oleshky is reported to have 1,700 inhabitants, down from 24,000 people before Russia’s full-scale invasion, with the town eight kilometres from Kherson.
Pope, Zelenskyy, Putin
Pope Leo XIV spoke by phone with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Oct. 19, and the Vatican said the conversation centered on "the grave situation" in Oleshky, which has been under Russian military occupation since 2022.
The Vatican said Pope Leo expressed the hope that cooperation between both parties would allow "the delivery of food and medical aid, and for the voluntary and safe evacuation of the civilian population," and Kyiv Post said Zelenskyy confirmed the call.
Zelenskyy told the pope, "We are working to help our people there. We are preparing decisions," as he also briefed Pope Leo on Russia’s escalating attacks against Ukrainian cities and the humanitarian crisis in occupied Oleshky.
The Vatican said Pope Leo’s Oct. 19 call with Zelenskyy came less than a week after an Oct. 13 call with Russian President Vladimir Putin, when the pope requested a humanitarian ceasefire.
Kyiv Post reported that no ceasefire agreement was announced, even as Ukrainian authorities warned civilians in Oleshky face worsening humanitarian catastrophe with restricted access to food, clean water, medicine and essential services.
Russia’s counter-narrative
Ukraine’s Main Intelligence Directorate of the Ministry of Defense said Russia planned an international teleconference to accuse the Ukrainian military of crimes against civilians and divert attention from the humanitarian catastrophe in the occupied town of Oleshky. Інтент said Russian propagandists organized a teleconference on 22 October 2026, 12:46, and it said the event was titled "Crimes of the Russian Federation Against the Civilian Population of Zaporizhzhia Oblast." Інтент reported that the organizers planned to involve diplomats from countries represented at the UN, OSCE, BRICS, and the CIS, and it said the keynote speaker was to be Rodion Miroshnik, a collaborator subject to sanctions.
Mezha.net said Ukraine’s chargé d’affaires in the United States, Denys Sienik, compared the situation in Oleshky to the Holodomor of 1932-1933, and it quoted him saying, "Today, Russia is once again using hunger, destruction and the denial of humanitarian aid as weapons against our people." Mezha.net added that there have been no official food deliveries since May 26, 2026, and it said the only route for delivering food runs through mined territory and is under threat of shelling.