UN says 596 civilians killed since Russia-Ukraine war began
The UN human rights office says at least 596 civilians have been killed in Ukraine since the start of the war, and at least 1,067 have been injured.
The Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights said Sunday that 43 of those killed were children, while 57 were injured.
From 24 Feb—12 March, we recorded 1,663 civilian casualties in context of Russia’s armed attack against #Ukraine: 596 killed, incl 43 children; 1,067 injured, incl 57 children, mostly caused shelling & airstrikes. Actual toll is much higher. Full update https://t.co/JWDTe3ya79 pic.twitter.com/TSgScJUr70
— UNHumanRightsUkraine (@UNHumanRightsUA) March 13, 2022
The Geneva-based office had documented 579 civilian deaths and 1,002 injured a day earlier.
It said most recorded civilian casualties were caused “ the use of explosive weapons with a wide impact area,” such as shelling from heavy artillery and missile strikes.
UN officials said they believe the actual number of casualties is “considerably higher” than so far recorded because the receipt of information has been delayed and many reports still need to be corroborated.