Ukrainian forces deliver 4 tonnes of food by drone to occupied Oleshky as humanitarian crisis deepens
Ukrainian forces used drones to deliver about 4,000 kg of food to 100 locations in Russian-occupied Oleshky, Kherson Oblast, one of the largest such operations since systematic drone deliveries across the Dnipro began in March. Head of the Kherson Oblast Military Administration Oleksandr Prokudin said Russian forces shoot down delivery drones, seize or resell the food, and detain and beat residents who receive aid. The situation has been raised at the UN Security Council, with Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha comparing the blockade to the 1932–1933 Holodomor.
Key points
- Ukrainian forces delivered roughly 4,000 kg of food by drone to 100 designated locations in occupied Oleshky, Kherson Oblast, in one of the largest such operations to date.
- Systematic drone deliveries of food to Oleshky across the Dnipro River have been running since March 2026, jointly run by the Kherson OVA with the 11th NGU Brigade and the 34th Separate Marine Infantry Brigade 'Borysfen'.
- The recent operation involved the 30th Marine Corps, tactical group 'Hrim' (Thunder), the 34th Separate Marine Brigade 'Borysfen', the 'Bolharychi' unit of the 11th NGU Brigade, the 34th Regiment of the National Guard, and the 79th Border Detachment.
- Head of Kherson OVA Oleksandr Prokudin said Russian forces shoot down aid drones, seize or resell food intended for children and elderly people, and detain, beat and imprison residents who receive humanitarian parcels.
- Prokudin said about 2,000 civilians remain in Oleshky, including nearly 50 children; the All-Ukrainian Council of Churches and other reporting put the number at more than 6,000, including about 200 children, in the city and surrounding district.
- Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha raised the situation at the UN Security Council on 23 September, comparing it to the 1932–1933 Holodomor and calling on Russia to open humanitarian corridors.
- On 19 September the All-Ukrainian Council of Churches and Religious Organizations appealed to Pope Leo XIV, the UN and the International Committee of the Red Cross to help evacuate Oleshky residents to Ukrainian-controlled territory.
Why it matters
The Oleshky drone deliveries show how Ukraine is trying to keep civilians alive in an occupied city that Moscow has effectively sealed off: ground convoys have been blocked since the end of May 2026, and the only remaining route is across the Dnipro by drone. Reports that Russian forces shoot the drones down, seize or resell the food, and beat residents who take the parcels put the case directly into the category of deliberate starvation of civilians — the same framing Ukraine's foreign minister took to the UN Security Council on 23 September, and the same appeal the All-Ukrainian Council of Churches took to Pope Leo XIV, the UN and the ICRC. The sharply different estimates of how many civilians remain (about 2,000 per the Kherson OVA versus more than 6,000 per the Council of Churches) underscore how little is actually known about the population at risk.
What happened
On 27 September 2026, head of the Kherson Oblast Military Administration Oleksandr Prokudin reported that Ukrainian forces had used drones to deliver approximately 4,000 kg (4 tonnes) of food to 100 designated locations in Russian-occupied Oleshky, on the left bank of the Dnipro in Kherson Oblast. He described it as one of the largest such operations to date. Systematic drone deliveries to Oleshky across the Dnipro have been running since March 2026, jointly run by the Kherson OVA with the 11th NGU Brigade and the 34th Separate Marine Infantry Brigade 'Borysfen'; the recent operation also involved the 30th Marine Corps, tactical group 'Hrim' (Thunder), the 'Bolharychi' unit of the 11th NGU Brigade, the 34th Regiment of the National Guard, and the 79th Border Detachment. Drones used were said to carry mostly 10–20 kg each, with some larger drones carrying up to 50 kg; items delivered included bread, flour, yeast, canned goods, cookies, breadsticks, butter and cereals, with pâté the most popular. Prokudin said Russian forces shoot down the aid drones, seize or resell food intended for children and elderly people, and detain, beat and imprison residents who receive the parcels. He put the remaining civilian population in the city at about 2,000, including nearly 50 children, and said residents are cut off from stable food, electricity and water and are unable to leave. The All-Ukrainian Council of Churches, reporting separately, put the number in the city and surrounding district at more than 6,000, including about 200 children, and said the last ground food deliveries were at the end of May 2026. On 23 September Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha raised the situation at the UN Security Council, calling for humanitarian corridors and invoking the 1932–1933 Holodomor; on 19 September the Council of Churches appealed to Pope Leo XIV, the UN and the ICRC for evacuation; and on 16 September Ukrainian Parliament Commissioner for Human Rights Dmytro Lubinets said Russia had not confirmed readiness to carry out an agreed humanitarian evacuation.
How Ukrainian sources describe it
Ukrainian-language outlets centre the operation itself: named military units (30th Marine Corps, 'Hrim' tactical group, 34th Marine Brigade 'Borysfen', 'Bolharychi' unit of the 11th NGU, 34th NG Regiment, 79th Border Detachment), the 4-tonne payload, and the 100 delivery points. They foreground alleged Russian misconduct — shooting down aid drones, seizing or reselling food for children and elderly, detaining and beating recipients — and the wider humanitarian blockade. Coverage ties the Oleshky crisis to Foreign Minister Sybiha's Holodomor parallel at the UN Security Council on 23 September and to the Council of Churches' appeal to Pope Leo XIV, the UN and the ICRC.
How international sources describe it
The single non-Ukrainian source in the input, French daily Le Monde, emphasises the broader humanitarian siege: civilians cut off for more than four months, shortages of food, electricity, gas and medicines, Russia's blocking of humanitarian convoys, and Sybiha's UN-side accusations and Holodomor comparison. Le Monde echoes Kyiv's framing of a deliberate humanitarian catastrophe but does not itself detail the drone delivery, the military units involved, or the alleged Russian obstruction of aid drones, leaving those as Ukraine-specific talking points.
Where reporting differs
Estimated number of civilians still in Oleshky: the Kherson OVA cites approximately 2,000 people (including nearly 50 children), while the All-Ukrainian Council of Churches and other reporting put the figure at more than 6,000 in Oleshky and the surrounding district (about 200 children). The spelling of the tactical group's name also varies between sources ('Hrim' versus 'Grim'); the underlying designation is the 'Thunder' (Грім) tactical group. Sources agree ground food convoys have not reached the city since late May 2026, with drone-based deliveries since March serving as the ongoing substitute route.
Background
Oleshky lies on the left bank of the Dnipro, which now forms the line of contact in Kherson Oblast, and has been under Russian occupation since February 2022. Systematic drone deliveries of food to the city have been run by the Kherson OVA together with the 11th NGU Brigade and the 34th Separate Marine Infantry Brigade 'Borysfen' since March 2026. Before the drone operation, the last ground food deliveries to the occupied city were at the end of May 2026. Faith-based and human-rights actors, including the All-Ukrainian Council of Churches and Religious Organizations, have separately appealed to Pope Leo XIV, the UN and the ICRC to help evacuate Oleshky residents.