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Death toll in eastern Ukraine surpasses 6,000: UN report

Xinhua, March 3, 2015 Adjust font size:

The estimated number of people killed in eastern Ukraine since conflict began there in April 2014 is believed to have now surpassed 6,000, the United Nations Human Rights Office (OHCHR) announced Monday.

The OHCHR added that the escalation in fighting in recent weeks, particularly near Donetsk airport and in the Debaltseve area, resulted in hundreds of deaths, both civilian and military, in spite of successive ceasefire agreement attempts,

OHCHR chief Zeid Ra'ad Al Hussein said the latest human rights monitoring report on the situation in Ukraine, which was released on Monday, paints a picture of "merciless devastation of civilian lives and infrastructure."

According to the report, from mid-April 2014 to Feb. 28, 2015, 5,809 people were documented as killed and 14,740 wounded in the east of Ukraine. Of these, 1,012 were killed and 3,793 wounded between Dec. 1, 2014 and Feb. 15, 2015. Given that full reports on casualties, especially near the Donetsk airport and in the Debaltseve area, are still pending, the OHCHR estimates that the total number of people killed in eastern Ukraine to date has almost certainly exceeded 6,000.

"More than 6,000 lives have now been lost in less than a year due to the fighting in eastern Ukraine," Ra'ad Al Hussein said, "it is imperative that all sides comply with the provisions of the Minsk Agreements and halt the indiscriminate shelling and other hostilities that have created a dreadful situation for civilians."

After a relative lull in December last year, the security and human rights situation in the east "dramatically deteriorated" in January and early February, the report states.

"The human rights situation in Ukraine remains grave," the High Commissioner said, noting that recent challenges include a series of attacks in Kharkiv and Odesa, along with fears of another attack on Mariupol, where 31 people died on January 24.

"Should this trend continue, this would represent a new and very deadly chapter in this conflict, expanding the areas where the rule of law and the protection of human rights are effectively absent," Ra'ad Al Hussein said.

However, the report notes some positive developments, including the talks that resulted in the new ceasefire agreement. Endit