Kryvyi Rih attack deadliest strike harming children in three years of war – UN
This was stated on Tuesday by UN Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs, Tom Fletcher, during a meeting of the UN Security Council, an Ukrinform correspondent reports.
“The Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) in Ukraine, which verified many of the casualties, reported this was the single deadliest strike harming children since February 2022,” the UN Under-Secretary-General said.
He stressed that in recent weeks, drone attacks have continued to strike cities and cause civilian casualties. Civilian infrastructure – including healthcare facilities, apartment blocks, schools and children’s playgrounds – have suffered extensive damage. More than 90 civilian casualties were recorded in those regions last week, according to authorities.
According to him, OHCHR has now verified the killing of at least 12,910 civilians, including 682 children, and the injury of almost 30,700 across Ukraine from 24 February 2022 to 31 March 2025.
“The true toll is likely far greater,” he noted.
In addition, nearly 3.7 million people remain internally displaced, with new waves of displacement in the country’s north-east due to hostilities. There are almost 7 million refugees from Ukraine recorded globally, mainly in Europe.
“Almost 13 million people across Ukraine need humanitarian support. The majority are women, children, older people and people with disabilities,” Fletcher said.
In the first two months of 2025, 290 humanitarian organizations – mainly national NGOs – reached 1.7 million people with vital aid and services, including emergency support following strikes.
“Thanks to the generosity of donors, 17 per cent of the US$2.6 billion needed for the 2025 Ukraine Humanitarian Needs and Response Plan […] has been secured,” he said.
As a result, the available resources must be concentrated on four urgent strategic priorities: supporting front-line communities, emergency response, facilitating evacuations and helping the displaced.
“Increased financial support is vital to ensure humanitarian operations can continue reaching those most in need,” he said.
He highlighted the ongoing suffering of the civilian population and underscored that the humanitarian crisis is worsening with each passing day. Fletcher urged the UN Security Council to “do more to ensure that this era of increasingly belligerent, transactional, self-defeating nationalism is not also remembered as one of callous impunity and brutal indifference”.
As reported, on the evening of April 4, the Russian forces launched a missile strike on a residential area in Kryvyi Rih, killing 20 individuals, including nine children.
