UN: Since May 1, at least 70 people killed, over 500 injured in Russian attacks across Ukraine
On May 5 alone, a wave of attacks by Russia killed 28 people and injured 194, bringing the total number of civilian casualties across Ukraine since May 1 to at least 70 killed and more than 500 injured, the UN Human Rights Monitoring Mission in Ukraine (HRMMU) has said.
HRMMU has confirmed most of the civilian casualties and continues to gather information.
"What is particularly alarming is both the scale of civilian casualties and the extent of territory affected in only a few days. More than 570 civilians have been reported killed and injured across 14 regions of Ukraine since 1 May," HRMMU Head Danielle Bell said.
HRMMU said that from May 1 to 5, Russian armed forces carried out numerous strikes on various cities across Ukraine, causing significant civilian casualties. On May 5, aerial bombs hit an industrial area in Zaporizhia, reportedly killing at least 12 people and injuring 46. On the same day, aerial bombs struck central areas of Kramatorsk, Donetsk region, reportedly killing at least six people and injuring 13. A series of long-range missile and drone strikes that has continued since May 1 has caused civilian deaths and injuries across Ukraine, including in the west of the country, in cities such as Ternopil and Rivne, as well as in Kharkiv, Dnipropetrovsk, Kherson, Poltava and Odesa regions.
Some of those killed and injured during repeat strikes on sites that had already been attacked earlier were emergency workers and rescuers. In Poltava region, two rescuers were killed and others were injured when a second strike hit a gas production facility that had previously been struck overnight on May 4 and 5. In Kherson on May 3, medical personnel came under attack by a short-range drone when they arrived to provide medical assistance to people injured in an earlier drone strike.
The UN said many of these attacks occurred when high-yield weapons struck urban areas during the daytime, which likely resulted in a significant number of casualties.
"Many of the civilians killed and injured were going about ordinary daily activities – commuting to work, working, shopping, walking, or responding to the aftermath of earlier strikes. In such circumstances, harm to civilians is foreseeable," Bell said.
