The use of long-range planning bombs by the Russian military aviation is the main reason for the increase in civilian casualties victims in Ukraine between March and May, reports the United Nations Office for Human Rights (OHCHR), reported Reuters, reported BTA.
These munitions have also caused extensive damage to civilian property and infrastructure, particularly near the front line, says an UNHRC report on the human rights situation in Ukraine. "The increased use of powerful, longer-range bombs by the Russian armed forces is a significant cause of the increase in civilian casualties, as well as the massive destruction of civilian infrastructure in frontline municipalities," said the report, which refers to the period between March and May.
UNHRC found that the Russian offensive in Kharkiv Oblast alone killed 78 civilians between March and May and injured 305 others from May 10 to 31. Between March and May, at least 436 civilians were killed and 1,760 people were injured in Ukraine, notes the UNSC. Actual numbers are likely higher due to limited access to the front line and Russian-occupied territory, as well as pending confirmation of some civilian casualties.
"The vast majority of casualties among the civilian population (96%) were caused by the use of explosive munitions with a wide range of action in populated areas - artillery shells, rockets, bombs, as well as other munitions dropped by unmanned aerial vehicles", says in the report, which will be presented to the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva on July 9.
Since it began its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, Russia has repeatedly denied carrying out attacks on civilians The UNSC said Russia's renewed attacks on Ukraine's energy infrastructure between March and May were the largest since the winter of 2022 -2023, and have caused massive power outages that have affected water supplies and communications networks.