UN reports rise in civilian casualties amid Russia’s war on Ukraine

That’s according to a report released on June 30 by the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR).

Key causes cited in the report:

• Strikes using long-range explosive weapons on populated areas
• Increased use of short-range drones
• Deployment of fragmentation warheads causing widespread damage

The most affected areas were those under the control of the Ukrainian government. One of the worst incidents, according to the UN, was a drone strike on a bus carrying factory workers in Dnipropetrovsk region, which left 10 dead and 57 injured.

The UN notes that Russian forces routinely disregard international humanitarian law.

"Our findings strongly suggest a failure to distinguish between civilian and military targets, and to take all feasible precautions to verify the military nature of those targets - or worse, an intentional decision not to,” said Danielle Bell, head of the UN Human Rights Monitoring Mission in Ukraine.

The report also documents strikes on at least five hospitals, which may constitute war crimes.