\n<\/p>\n
\u201cYet again, another unfathomable attack of the Russian Armed Forces killed and injured civilians, this time at the start of their day at a busy marketplace in Kherson City, south of Ukraine,\u201d Matthias Schmale said in a statement.<\/p>\n
At least five people were killed, and others injured, according to media reports.<\/p>\n
Mr. Schmale said the market and a public transport stop were also damaged.<\/p>\n
He noted that since the start of the full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine on 24 February 2022, \u201cthousands of people going about their daily lives in markets, schools and hospitals have never returned home due to the impact of the war.\u201d<\/p>\n
He stressed that \u201cattacks on civilians and civilian infrastructure are strictly prohibited under international humanitarian law and must stop<\/strong>.\u201d<\/p>\n Relatedly, civilian casualties and damage to civilian infrastructure in Ukraine \u201cincreased significantly\u201d between June and August of this year<\/strong>, the UN human rights office, OHCHR, said in its latest report on the country.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cWith 589 civilians killed and 2,685 injured from conflict-related violence between 1 June and 31 August 2024, the number of civilian casualties over this reporting period was 45 per cent higher than in the previous three-month period<\/strong>. July 2024 was the deadliest month for civilians in Ukraine since October 2022,\u201d the report said.\u00a0<\/p>\n The deadliest single day was 8 July, when at least 43 civilians were killed in a large-scale coordinated missile attack<\/strong>, \u201cwith dozens of missiles launched by the Russian Federation against targets across Ukraine\u201d.<\/p>\n \u00a9 UNICEF\/Oleksii Filippov<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n People shelter from a missile attack in a subway station in the Ukrainian capital, Kyiv.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n Most civilian casualties, 98 per cent, were caused by the use of explosive weapons with wide area effects in populated areas. The majority, 89 per cent, occurred in territory controlled by the Government of Ukraine and 11 per cent in Russian-occupied areas.\u00a0 Older people, particularly women, were disproportionally affected.<\/p>\n Russia also continued to target critical energy infrastructure during the reporting period, affecting essential services and deepening concerns, particularly with winter approaching.<\/p>\n OHCHR also noted that Ukraine\u2019s incursion into the Kursk region of Russia on 6 August was \u201ca significant development\u201d during the reporting period.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cWhile we have established some names of civilians who were killed and injured in connection with this incursion, we have not been able to establish the exact circumstances of these casualties due to lack of access and limited available public information,\u201d Spokesperson Liz Throssell told journalists in Geneva.<\/p>\n She said that in August, OHCHR requested Russia to facilitate access for these purposes, \u201cbut, to date, this has not been granted.\u201d<\/p>\n The UN Human Rights Monitoring Mission in Ukraine (HRMMU) verified that as of 31 August, 11,743 civilians have been killed and 24,614 injured since the conflict began.<\/p>\n The report said that as trends continued into September, civilian casualty numbers for that month are on track to be as high as August.<\/p>\n Intensive military efforts by Russian forces have forced the Ukrainian authorities to evacuate thousands from areas near the frontline.\u00a0<\/p>\n Meanwhile, attacks against cities across Ukraine \u2013 such as Sumy, Kharkiv, and Zaporizhzhia – have damaged and destroyed civilian property and infrastructure, including schools, hospitals, and even a geriatric care home. Further attacks against Ukraine\u2019s energy infrastructure have also occurred.<\/p>\n The report also covers the treatment of prisoners of war (POWs), based on hundreds of interviews. It said Ukrainian POWs have been subjected to widespread and systematic torture, and ill treatment, at the hands of Russian authorities.<\/p>\n \u201cThey described severe beatings, electric shocks, suffocation, tasering, prolonged stress positions, sleep deprivation, dog bites, mock executions, sensory deprivation, threats, degrading treatment, and humiliation, 68% reported sexual violence,\u201d said HRMMU chief Daniel Bell, speaking from the Ukrainian capital, Kyiv.<\/p>\nSharp rise in casualties<\/strong><\/h2>\n
Use of explosive weapons<\/strong><\/h2>\n
Kursk incursion<\/strong><\/h2>\n
Casualties continue to mount<\/strong><\/h2>\n
Prisoners of war<\/strong><\/h2>\n