The United Nations: The number of victims in the Donbas has doubled compared with late 2016
In the first two months of 2017, the number of killed and injured civilians as a result of the conflict in the Donbas has doubled in comparison with November-December 2016, according to a report by the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA).
“Since the beginning of 2017, the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights has confirmed 111 civilian casualties (20 killed and 91 injured) compared with 51 casualties in November-December 2016,” the report says. It is noted that the majority of civilians were victims of shelling from tanks, artillery, or multiple rocket launchers.
In addition, the report says that houses, vital infrastructure, schools, and medical facilities are often damaged by the shellings. In total, approximately 2,000 civilians were killed and 6,000-7,000 have been wounded due to the conflict in the Donbas since 2014.
At the same time, the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights emphasized that the real death toll may be higher.