On Tuesday, the UN Humanitarian Coordinator, Denise Brown, issued a statement strongly denouncing the attacks on primarily urban areas.

According to Ms. Brown, the citizens of Ukraine began the new year with grief and suffering as the Russian Federation has continued bombing for three consecutive days, resulting in fatalities and damage to residential buildings, including those of innocent children.

She stressed that the current situation is extremely concerning, as numerous areas in the capital city of Kyiv are experiencing power and water outages. This poses a significant threat, especially with temperatures expected to reach -20 degrees Celsius later this week.

Support to Ukraine

The situation in the Donetsk Region is equally severe due to the ongoing hostilities, resulting in hundreds of thousands of people being without power and worsening the already dire humanitarian crisis.

Despite the destruction, Ms. Brown restated the dedication of aid workers to persist in helping the people of Ukraine.

Ms. Brown expressed her condolences to the loved ones of those who lost their lives or were hurt, and also to those who are worried about the whereabouts of their missing loved ones. She emphasized the importance of providing assistance to those who are experiencing the destruction caused by Russia’s invasion.

The UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) shared on Twitter that numerous children in the capital had no choice but to seek refuge at the city’s metro stations overnight.

Russian city hit

At the most recent session of the Security Council in 2023, which was called for by Russia on Saturday, a high-ranking official from the United Nations who specializes in political affairs spoke out against acts of aggression targeting the Russian city of Belgorod, which is situated near the border with Ukraine.

Khaled Khiari, the Assistant Secretary-General of the UN Department of Political and Peacebuilding Affairs, reported that a minimum of 18 non-military individuals lost their lives and over 100 sustained injuries in that location.

Violation of humanitarian law

On Tuesday, Ms. Brown reiterated to the Russian Federation that international humanitarian law strictly prohibits indiscriminate attacks on civilians and civilian infrastructure.

Source: news.un.org