Translated with AI
The UN Human Rights Monitoring Mission (HRMMU) reported on Wednesday a sharp increase in civilian casualties as a result of a series of widespread attacks across Ukraine. According to the mission, at least 70 people have been killed and over 500 injured since May 1.
On May 5 alone, Russian armed forces reportedly killed 28 people and wounded another 194. The mission has already confirmed a significant number of these cases and continues to verify the information.
"The scale and geography of the attacks are deeply alarming."
HRMMU Head Daniel Bell stressed that the intensity and scope of the attacks in recent days are unprecedented: “Since May 1, more than 570 civilians have reportedly been killed and injured in 14 regions of Ukraine.”
From May 1 to 5, strikes targeted major cities and industrial areas. Among the hardest hit was Zaporizhzhia, where aerial bombs struck an industrial zone on May 5, reportedly killing at least 12 people and injuring 46. That same day, strikes on central Kramatorsk killed at least six people and wounded 13.
A series of missile and drone attacks also affected the Ternopil, Rivne, Kharkiv, Dnipropetrovsk, Kherson, Poltava, and Odessa regions.
Repeated attacks on rescuers
In a number of cases, strikes were carried out again on already damaged targets, which resulted in the deaths of emergency services personnel.
In the Poltava region, two rescue workers were killed when a second strike hit a gas production facility that had been attacked earlier on the night of May 4-5. In Kherson, on May 3, a medical team arriving at the site of the previous attack was struck by a drone.
Daytime attacks have increased the death toll.
Many of the attacks on densely populated areas took place during daylight hours, which the HRMMU assessed as contributing to the increased number of deaths and injuries.
"People were going about their daily business—going to work, shopping, taking walks, or helping the injured," Bell noted. "Under these circumstances, the damage to civilians was predictable."
Casualties in territories under Russian control
Ten people were reported killed in Russian-controlled territory between May 1 and 5. Five of them were killed in a drone strike on May 5 in Dzhankoy, Crimea. At least two people were reported killed and 35 injured in Cheboksary on May 5.
The mission emphasized that parties to the conflict are obligated to comply with international humanitarian law and take all possible measures to minimize civilian casualties, from the timing of attacks to the type of weapons used.
