In a photograph supplied by the Ukrainian Emergency Service, we observe the aftermath of a Russian missile strike on private residential houses near Kryvyi Rih, Ukraine, dated Monday, January 8, 2024. The image captures the extent of the damage caused by the attack. (Photo credit: Ukrainian Emergency Service via AP)
In the latest report released by the United Nations Human Rights Monitoring Mission in Ukraine, it was revealed that Russia's intensified missile and drone assaults in various parts of Ukraine during recent weeks have led to a significant surge in civilian casualties. The report, presented on Tuesday, disclosed that in December alone, more than 100 individuals lost their lives, while nearly 500 sustained injuries as a result of these attacks.
The monitoring mission highlighted a disturbing 26.5% increase in civilian casualties from November to December, marking a departure from the declining trend observed throughout 2023. Danielle Bell, the head of the UN's monitoring mission, lamented that the relentless wave of attacks in late December and early January abruptly halted the steady decrease in civilian casualties witnessed earlier in the year.
The report also emphasized ongoing efforts to verify accounts of the intense Russian missile and drone strikes that commenced on December 29, persisting into early January. Preliminary figures indicated that 86 civilians lost their lives, and 416 others suffered injuries in these assaults. Bell condemned these attacks, stating that they bring death and destruction to Ukrainian civilians who have already endured substantial losses during Russia's full-scale invasion over the past two years.
The UN monitoring mission underscored that the highest number of casualties occurred on December 29 and January 2, coinciding with plummeting winter temperatures. It reported a tragic incident on January 4, where Russian missiles struck the small town of Pokrovsk and the nearby village of Rivne, burying two families—six adults and five children—in the rubble of their homes. Some bodies remain undiscovered.
Another distressing event unfolded on January 6, as a Russian missile strike in Novomoskovsk injured 31 civilians, including eight passengers on a minibus that was destroyed during the morning commute.
The cumulative toll of civilian casualties since Russia invaded Ukraine on February 24, 2022, has surpassed grim milestones. According to Edem Wosornu, the director of operations at the UN humanitarian office, more than 10,200 civilians, including 575 children, have lost their lives, and over 19,300 have sustained injuries. Unfortunately, neither Moscow nor Kyiv provides timely data on military losses, and the information available is subject to mutual amplification of casualties by both sides. As the two-year war persists with no signs of peace talks, the human cost of the conflict continues to mount.
