Published on: 2026-07-27
Source: United Nations – United Nations –
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According to her, residential buildings, children’s playgrounds, gas stations, markets, and logistics warehouses are being hit.
Kyiv and frontline areas
Kyiv, noted the UN representative, suffers from constant shelling.
“Just yesterday, as a result of the eighth major missile strike on the capital this month, a residential building was damaged. Three people were injured,” Goto said. In total, according to available data, at least 56 civilians have died in Kyiv in July, and another 232 have been injured.
According to Goto, information is also coming in about daily attacks in the frontline areas of Donetsk, Kharkiv, Sumy, Kherson, Dnipropetrovsk, and Zaporizhzhia regions.
Thus, on July 24, as a result of a strike on Sloviansk, at least six people reportedly died and another nine were injured. Residential houses, businesses, and the honorary consulate of Latvia were damaged. On July 11, aerial bombs were dropped on residential areas of Sumy, killing five civilians, including a girl, and injuring 41 others, including children.
“In recent weeks, the Odessa region has been particularly hard hit by multiple deadly strikes. The UN Human Rights Office has confirmed that just this month, at least 26 civilians have been killed and 92 injured in the Odessa region,” Goto added.
According to the Office, since the beginning of the full-scale invasion by the Russian Federation, the deaths of at least 16,431 Ukrainian civilians, including 803 children, have been confirmed. Another 48,613 people, including 2,960 children, have been injured. The UN emphasizes that these are only confirmed cases, and the actual numbers are likely considerably higher.
Casualties on both sides of the front line
According to Goto, the summer escalation increasingly affects the territories of Ukraine temporarily occupied by the Russian Federation. “On Saturday, the occupation authorities reported the death of 12 people, including five children, as a result of a drone attack on a tourist base in the part of Zaporizhzhia region of Ukraine occupied by Russia,” she said.
In the Autonomous Republic of Crimea and Sevastopol, which are under the control of the Russian Federation, Ukrainian drone strikes on electrical substations have allegedly led to prolonged disruptions in electricity and water supply.
Russian authorities report an increase in civilian casualties following Ukrainian strikes on oil, industrial, and logistics infrastructure located on Russian territory. According to received data, on July 24 in the Kirov region, at least six people were killed as a result of attacks on industrial and logistics facilities, and more than two dozen were injured. On July 18, Ukrainian drones reportedly struck large warehouse complexes in the Tambov and Moscow regions. According to available information, eight people were killed and more than 60 were injured.
“Since then, such attacks have been reported almost daily,” Goto noted.
In the first half of 2026, the OHCHR recorded reports from Russian authorities about 1,846 civilian casualties on the territory of the Russian Federation – 250 killed and 1,596 wounded. This is 121 percent more than in the same period last year.
“International humanitarian law unequivocally prohibits attacks on civilian populations and civilian infrastructure,” Goto emphasized.
“As we have repeatedly and consistently stated during all our briefings, these attacks are unacceptable, completely unjustified, and must stop immediately. The UN continues to unconditionally condemn such attacks, wherever they occur,” she added.
Strikes on ports and rising grain prices
The Organization also expressed serious concern over the intensification of Russian attacks on Ukrainian seaports. In July alone, more than six attacks on civilian vessels were recorded in the Odessa region, resulting in, according to available data, 44 crew members being killed or injured. Many of the attacked vessels were sailing under the flags of third countries and were carrying food supplies. Russia, according to the UN representative, has also intensified strikes on food industry facilities, agricultural machinery, and fields.
The speaker added that at the same time, Ukraine has intensified attacks on Russian and Russia-linked maritime logistics, including strikes on oil tankers. It is reported that over 100 vessels were attacked in the Sea of Azov alone in July.
According to the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), wheat prices have risen by 20 percent since the beginning of the month, reaching their highest level since March 2024. The UN warned that further disruptions to shipping in the Black Sea and Azov Sea, as well as in other strategically important areas, could lead to increases in the costs of transportation, insurance, food, and energy resources, which will especially severely affect the situation in developing countries dependent on imports.
“We call for maximum restraint and to avoid actions that jeopardize the safety of civilian shipping,” Goto said.
The necessity of diplomatic efforts
A UN representative also reminded of the ongoing risks to the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant. On July 15, the International Atomic Energy Agency reported the 22nd complete disconnection of the plant from external power supply since the beginning of the war. Ten such incidents occurred in just the last three months. The IAEA also expressed concern over a series of drone attacks in the Enerhodar area, where a significant portion of the plant’s staff lives.
Goto stated that the ongoing escalation, the increasing number of civilian casualties, the destruction of civil infrastructure, and the situation in global food security once again underscore the need to intensify diplomatic efforts.
Humanitarian organizations continue their work
Acting Assistant Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs Indrika Ratwatte, speaking at the meeting on behalf of the UN Emergency Relief Coordinator Tom Fletcher, recalled that as a result of recent attacks on Ukraine, UN warehouses and other humanitarian facilities were damaged. Despite this, he noted, humanitarian organizations continue to operate across the country.
For many Ukrainian communities, the speaker continued, this is already the fourth summer under the constant threat of military actions, while people also anxiously think about the upcoming winter.
According to Ratwatte, as the nature of the fighting changes, humanitarian organizations constantly have to change the ways they operate.
“Every morning starts with the same question: how to safely reach people? Answering it is becoming increasingly difficult,” he said.
Humanitarian cargoes have to be relocated, warehouses moved, and convoy routes reconsidered. “The work changes, but its purpose remains the same,” Ratwatte emphasized.
Preparation for winter
At the same time, humanitarian organizations are already preparing for winter. They are pre-positioning necessary supplies, helping to restore housing and critical infrastructure facilities. Last week, the UN and its partners presented the Winter Response Plan for Ukraine.
Ratwatte emphasized that the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs will continue to seek practical arrangements to enable the safe evacuation of civilians and the delivery of vital assistance.
“Wherever military operations take place, the civilian population, including humanitarian workers, must be protected. Infrastructure essential for people’s lives must not become targets of attacks. Humanitarian aid must be delivered unimpeded to all civilians in need,” he emphasized.
The United States called for an immediate ceasefire
Speaking at the meeting, U.S. representative Dan Negrya drew attention to the strike on a civilian vessel carrying grain in the Black Sea, which resulted in the deaths of crew members – citizens of India and Syria.
“These casualties – like countless others who have died – could have been avoided if Russia had responded to President Trump’s call to start negotiations to end this war,” he said.
The US representative again called for an immediate ceasefire and urged the Russian Federation and Ukraine to begin negotiations to achieve a lasting resolution of the conflict. He emphasized that Washington is ready to play a constructive role in this process.
The Russian Federation condemns Ukrainian attacks on civilians
“The Kiev regime continues its terrorist attacks on peaceful Russians,” said Anna Evstigneeva, Acting Permanent Representative of the Russian Federation to the UN, speaking at the meeting. According to her, during the period from July 13 to 19, 364 people were injured, including 12 children, and 69 people died, including 2 children.
She also noted the attacks from July 17 to 20 on several tankers near the Caspian Pipeline Consortium marine terminal near Novorossiysk.
“We emphasize once again that the Armed Forces of Russia strike exclusively specific targets involved in supporting the Armed Forces of Ukraine,” said the Russian representative.
Ukraine: Moscow intensifies “illegal” attacks
Deputy Permanent Representative of Ukraine to the UN Vladimir Pavlichenko stated that the international community is allowing repetitions of war crimes, which, according to him, are committed by the Russian Federation. He accused Moscow of “cynically fabricating pretexts” to justify its illegal aggression against Ukraine.
“Russia continues to deliberately strike places where ordinary people live, work, and shop. This demonstrates complete disregard for human life,” Pavlichenko stated.
He emphasized that the intensification of Russian attacks is an “indisputable fact,” which, according to him, was also confirmed by the representatives of the UN who spoke at the meeting.
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