OMM Redaksiyası
The United Nations warned on Friday that repeated attacks on civilian areas and critical infrastructure in Ukraine are worsening the humanitarian crisis as winter approaches.
Gemma Connell, director of the Crisis Response Division at the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), urged Russia and Ukraine to protect civilians, facilitate aid deliveries and ensure safe evacuations for people trapped in frontline and occupied areas. She delivered a Security Council briefing on behalf of UN humanitarian chief Tom Fletcher.
“The past 48 hours have brought more death and destruction across Ukraine,” Connell said, describing attacks on residential neighbourhoods, public transport and essential civilian infrastructure in several regions.
Repeated strikes on Ukraine’s energy infrastructure have led to scheduled and emergency power cuts, including in Kyiv, she said. “Winter preparedness cannot wait for winter,” Connell told the council.
The UN’s $358 million Winter Response Plan aims to support more than 2 million of Ukraine’s most vulnerable people with heating, shelter, food, healthcare, cash and other essential assistance.
Connell said funding must arrive in time for aid agencies to position supplies, repair homes and heating systems, and help communities prepare for freezing temperatures. She cautioned that humanitarian assistance alone could not make up for the continued destruction of civilian infrastructure.
“Ultimately, no amount of preparedness can substitute for protecting the infrastructure civilians depend on in the first place,” she said.
Connell set out three immediate priorities for the parties: protect civilians and infrastructure in accordance with international humanitarian law; agree on practical arrangements to deliver aid to civilians wherever they are and enable safe, voluntary evacuations when needed; and protect humanitarian workers, with credible investigations and accountability when incidents occur.
