Lisa Doughten, Director of Finance and Partnerships at the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) highlights the unrelenting number of civilian casualties.
“Daily attacks continue, causing death, injury and unspeakable suffering to ordinary Ukrainians, while destroying and damaging civilian infrastructure.”, she said, adding that for those near the front lines, life is even more difficult.
“They faced constant shelling and impossible choices: flee under dangerous conditions, leaving everything they have behind – perhaps for the second or third time – or stay behind, and risk injury or death.”
In regions such as Zaporizhzhia, Donetsk, Kharkiv and Kherson, dozens of civilians have been killed in recent attacks. In November alone, 65 civilians were killed and 372 injured across 11 regions of Ukraine, double the number of casualties from the previous month.
Energy infrastructure is attacked
The crisis has been exacerbated by ““repeated, large-scale, coordinated attacks” on Ukraine’s energy infrastructuresaid Mrs. Doughten.
These civilians are in even greater danger when temperatures drop to minus 20 degrees Celsius. According to the United Nations Development Program (UNDP), more than 60% of the country’s energy generation facilities have been damaged since March.
Ms. Doughten added: “Entering the coldest months of the year, people’s access to electricity, gas, heating and water is seriously affected.”
Humanity is in danger
The dangerous situation also affected humanitarian operations, with aid workers, vehicles and depots being attacked. The number of aid worker deaths has nearly tripled this year – from 4 in 2022 and 5 in 2023, to 11 in 2024.
Despite these challenges, the humanitarian community has stepped up its efforts, Ms. Doughten said, noting that by 2024, More than 630 humanitarian organizations have provided aid to 7.7 million peoplePrioritize support for the most vulnerable.
However, an estimated 1.5 million civilians in Russian-occupied regions such as Donetsk, Kherson, Luhansk and Zaporizhzhia remain out of reach.
“We still cannot reach these people at any appropriate scale. Failure to provide support in these areas could have serious consequences, especially in winter, she added.
Call to action
Ms. Doughten concluded with an appeal to the international community, calling for immediate action in three areas: first, she called for full commitment and compliance with international humanitarian law, especially on protection civilians and humanitarians, as well as unhindered access to those in need.
Second, she emphasized the urgent need for more funding. While donors have contributed nearly $2 billion this year, there is still a shortfall of $1.1 billion.
“We need donors to step up and accelerate flexible funding to sustain lifesaving operations as we move into 2025,” she said.
Finally, she emphasized the need to end pain at its source.
“As long as this intolerable war continues, civilians will continue to suffer the consequences. What Ukraine and its people need is an end to this cruel war.”
