More than 12,600 civilians have been killed since the start of the full-scale war in Ukraine

The UN Human Rights Monitoring Mission was able to confirm that since February 2022, 12,605 civilians have been killed and another 29,178 injured due to Russian aggression against Ukraine.

This is stated in the mission’s report. The vast majority of civilian casualties (89%) and damage to educational and medical institutions (93%) occurred in territory controlled by Ukraine.

The largest number of casualties in January was caused by short-range drones, including FVPs – drones, which exceed the impact of any other weapon. In particular, in the Ukrainian-controlled part of the Kherson region, 70% of the victims died precisely because of such drones.

Several shellings in Zaporizhzhia on 8, 18 and 23 January caused a high number of civilian casualties (17 dead; 176 injured), which also contributed to the overall increase in casualties in January.

The majority of casualties (81%) occurred near the contact line, primarily in Kherson, Zaporizhia and Donetsk regions.

The report notes that the true extent of civilian harm – both casualties and damage to infrastructure – is likely to be significantly higher, as much of the data cannot be verified due to the high number of reports and lack of access to the areas concerned.

The number of civilian casualties is likely to be particularly underestimated in cities such as Mariupol (Donetsk region), Lysychansk, Popasna and Severodonetsk (Luhansk region), where intense fighting continued at the start of the full-scale invasion.

The UN noted that in January 2025, short-range drones caused the death and injury of more civilians than any other weapon, striking people in their cars, buses and on the streets.