Russia’s relentless attacks on Ukrainian civilians have come at quite a toll for the smaller Eastern European country. The United Nations Human Rights Monitoring Mission in Ukraine declared that 2025 was the deadliest year for Ukrainian civilians since the war started in 2022.
Over 2,500 civilians were killed and another 12,142 wounded during Russia’s attacks in 2025, according to the U.N. Human Rights Monitoring Mission in Ukraine. The total killed and wounded last year were 31% higher than in 2024 and 70% higher than in 2023. During the previous three years, Russia’s attacks had resulted in 6,576 civilian deaths and 27,931 injuries, the HRMMU reported.
“The 31 per cent increase in civilian casualties compared with 2024 represents a marked deterioration in the protection of civilians,” said Danielle Bell, head of HRMMU. “Our monitoring shows that this rise was driven not only by intensified hostilities along the frontline, but also by the expanded use of long-range weapons, which exposed civilians across the country to heightened risk.”
“The expanded use of short-range drones has rendered many areas near the frontline effectively uninhabitable,” said Bell. “As essential services shut down and infrastructure is destroyed, it has become too dangerous in some communities even to provide emergency medical care or evacuate civilians. In 2025, many people who had endured years of hostilities were ultimately compelled to leave their homes.”
The United Nations Human Rights Commission released these findings on Monday. They came as Russia continued its attacks on Ukraine, a reality that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky addressed on Tuesday. Russia’s latest attack on Ukraine involved approximately 300 Shaheed drones, 18 ballistic, and seven cruise missiles.
“Almost 300 strike drones, most of which are ‘Shaheeds’, 18 ballistic and 7 cruise missiles were launched by the Russians over Ukraine this night,” Zelensky said in a post on X about Russia’s latest aggression. “Again, the main target of the strike is our energy sector: generation, substations. Unfortunately, there is a lot of destruction of residential and civil infrastructure. The Dnipro, Zhytomyr, Zaporizhia, Kyiv, Odesa, Sumy, Kharkiv, Donetsk regions were under attack.”
“Without any military sense, they hit a postal terminal in Korotych in the Kharkiv region with missiles and killed 4 people,” said Zelensky. “My condolences to the relatives and friends. The situation in the Kyiv region is difficult: several hundred thousand families are now without electricity. All emergency services are on the ground. Invincibility Points have been deployed. As always, where Russia is trying to destroy, Ukrainians support each other, and it is internal stability that is needed most now.”
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Zelensky also mentioned his country’s need for more air defense systems and how that need is compounded during winter. He requested new aid packages for his country.
“Every such blow against life is a reminder that we cannot stop supporting Ukraine,” Zelensky said. “Missiles for air defense systems are needed every day, and especially during winter. The world can respond to this terror of Russia with new aid packages to Ukraine. We are counting on the acceleration of deliveries of what has already been agreed upon with America and Europe.”
“Russia must understand that the cold will not help win the war,” he added. “Thank you to everyone who helps.”