Civilian casualties in Kyiv are nearly four times higher this year than in all of 2024 – UN

This was stated in a report by the United Nations Human Rights Monitoring Mission in Ukraine (HRMMU), according to Ukrinform.

Commenting on yet another massive combined attack by the Russian Federation using missiles and long-range unmanned aerial vehicles in the early hours of 25 November, the Mission stressed that this was the seventh attack targeting energy infrastructure in several regions of the country in the past two months.

“Millions of people across Ukraine fear for their loved ones each time hundreds of drones and missiles fly overhead, knowing that anyone can be harmed, no matter where they live,” said Danielle Bell, Head of the United Nations Human Rights Monitoring Mission in Ukraine.

The HRMMU underscored that this year, the Russian Federation has significantly increased its use of long-range weapons. Several recent large-scale attacks involved more than 500 missiles and long-range unmanned aerial vehicles. They were launched over a short period, aimed at several regions, and overwhelmed the airspace over major cities.

The Mission stressed that as these attacks have intensified, the number of civilian casualties in large cities has risen sharply. From January to October 2024, Russian long-range drones and missiles killed 434 and injured 2,045 civilians. Over the same period in 2025, the number of civilian deaths caused by long-range weapons rose by 26% to 548, while the number of civilians injured increased by 75% to 3,592.

For example, in Kyiv, the number of civilian casualties in just the first ten months of 2025 was nearly four times higher than in all of 2024. Other major urban centres such as Dnipro and Zaporizhzhia have also seen a significant rise in civilian casualties.

“Beyond the horrific loss of life, civilian homes, buildings, and public infrastructure are also destroyed, with reconstruction potentially taking years. Each new attack further compounds the psychological toll on civilians,” Bell stressed.

The UN Mission noted that recent waves of attacks on energy infrastructure have increased the cumulative strain on Ukraine’s energy system.

“Emergency outages in the aftermath of such attacks add to the already significant rolling blackouts that the population bears daily. Russian attacks on energy infrastructure facilities in Ukraine have left the majority of the regions nationwide with severe power shortages, as winter approaches and temperatures begin to drop,” the statement reads.

As reported by Ukrinform, in the early hours of 25 November, Russian occupying forces carried out a combined strike on Ukraine’s critical infrastructure facilities using attack UAVs and air-launched ballistic missiles, submarine-launched cruise missiles, and surface-to-surface missiles. Ukraine’s air defence shot down or jammed 452 enemy aerial targets.

In Kyiv, seven people were killed, and 21 were injured, including a child.