‘Breath of fresh air’ truce brings hope to Ukraine’s ravaged Kherson

Ukraine – Gardener Volodymyr Omeltchenko, rake in hand, looked up at the sky with an expression of near disbelief — only the pitter-patter of rain and the sound of a lawnmower broke the silence of Freedom Square, a central area of the Ukrainian city of Kherson which has been relentlessly bombarded by Russian forces. Over the past three days, a humanitarian ceasefire has made it possible to evacuate inhabitants of Oleshky, a nearby town under Russian occupation and gripped by hunger. That ceasefire has been a “breath of fresh air,” said the 38-year-old father with piercing blue eyes.