Russia's nearly two-year-old invasion of Ukraine has caused immense suffering, with civilians paying a horrendous price as tens of thousands were killed and wounded, while millions were displaced and subjected to bad treatment, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Turk said.
In a statement issued on February 22, two days before the second anniversary of the launch of Moscow's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, Turk said the UN Human Rights Monitoring Mission in Ukraine (HRMMU) had verified 30,457 civilian casualties during the war -- 10,582 killed and 19,875 injured, adding that the actual numbers were likely to be considerably higher.
"Russia's full-scale armed attack on Ukraine, which is about to enter its third year with no end in sight, continues to cause serious and widespread human rights violations, destroying lives and livelihoods," Turk said.
The invasion "has exacted a horrific human cost, inflicting immense suffering on millions of civilians," he added.
The HRMMU documented summary executions, widespread torture, and arbitrary detentions of civilians by Russian troops as well as forced disappearances and other human rights violations, the statement said.
Meanwhile, the United Nations migration agency said on February 22 that more than 14.6 million people, or 40 percent of Ukraine's population, depend on some type of humanitarian assistance this year, while millions of Ukrainian refugees abroad also require assistance.
The Geneva-based International Organization for Migration (IOM) estimated that 2.2 million refugees were currently in Ukraine's neighboring countries, while a total of nearly 6.5 million are refugees globally.
Some 3.7 million people have been displaced inside Ukraine, families are still separated, and children left homeless, the IOM said in a statement that also called on the international community to step up its efforts to help the Ukrainian civilians affected by the war.
"We count on increased support from donors and local partners to meet the challenges that lie ahead in providing a better life for Ukrainians," IOM Director-General Amy Pope said.
