UN says civilians killed, injured as attacks on power, rail systems intensify in Ukraine

Anjali Sharma

GG News Bureau
UNITED NATIONS, 30th April. UN Human Rights Monitoring Mission in Ukraine said on Monday that an increase in civilian casualties caused by intensifying attacks from the Russian armed forces against electric power infrastructure and railway system called for concern.

The mission said that Ukraine’s energy infrastructure sustained four waves of attacks that killed six people, injured at least 45 and struck at least 20 facilities since March 2022.

It noted missile attacks damaged four thermal power plants critical for electricity generation. Two of the plants are located in western Ukraine, far from the frontline.

UNICEF noted the attacks had damaged power and water supplies, which disrupted critical services necessary for children’s care.

Danielle Bell, Head of Mission at HRMMU, said, “These attacks have caused civilian deaths, and they also jeopardize essential services such as power generation and rail transport, compounding the risks and harm affecting the civilian population of Ukraine.”

The agency said that recent attacks on Ukraine’s railway system have claimed the lives of 11 civilians and injured dozens in regions like Dnipropetrovsk, Kharkiv, Donetsk and Cherkasy.

Those killed in the attacks were railway and power station workers who were either in or near the vicinity.

Ms. Bell said “Attacks on the railway system threaten a key mode of transportation that people in Ukraine depend on for personal travel and transport of essential goods, particularly given the restriction on all air traffic and limited access to seaports,”.

Ukrainian railway facilities said there were 3 attacks, which left civilians dead and injured.

On 25 April, a missile strike killed 3 railway employees and injured four in Udachne in Donetsk, they added.

Several other employees were injured in a missile attack on a railway facility in Smila, located in the Cherkasy region.

In Balakliia in the Kharkiv region, 11 people were injured in a missile attack that caused damage to the railway station and a train that had arrived.

Eight people lost their lives due to railway attacks in Synelnykove and Dnipro.

HRMMU added that power outages frequently occurred in the immediate aftermath of attacks on energy infrastructure, affecting millions across the country and also leading to interruptions to the water supply.