Ukraine: Türk deplores wave of strikes killing dozens of civilians, including women and children at hospitals

GENEVA (8 July 2024) - UN Human Rights Chief Volker Türk today deplored the Russian Federation’s deadly wave of missile strikes on densely populated areas of Ukraine, which primarily affected Kyiv, Kryvi Rih, Pokrovsk and Dnipro.

The attacks also struck two of the country’s main hospitals for children and women in Kyiv, as well as key energy infrastructure. Authorities in Ukraine reported that at least 34 people were killed and 127 injured.

“Shockingly, one of the strikes severely damaged the intensive care, surgical and oncology wards of Okhmatdyt, which is Ukraine’s largest children’s referral hospital, and destroyed its children’s toxicology department, where children receive dialysis,” said the High Commissioner for Human Rights. “Among the victims were Ukraine’s sickest children."

“My team visited the site shortly after the attack and observed children receiving treatment for cancer in hospital beds set up in parks and on streets, where medical workers had quickly established triage areas, amongst chaos, dust and debris.”

Health officials said the entire hospital was now without electricity, preventing the use of ventilators and other urgent care. It was not immediately clear how many people were killed in the strike.

UN Human Rights staff also witnessed a massive outpouring of solidarity from local residents, who rushed to the scene with blankets, water and food to assist the patients and staff, said Türk, adding they had to leave the site after renewed explosions in the city.

Also in Kyiv, at least seven civilians were killed at the ISIDA medical centre -- one of the largest women's health and family planning centres in Ukraine – by the secondary effects of a missile that was intercepted above the facility.

“This is abominable, and I implore those with influence to do everything in their power to ensure these attacks stop immediately,” he said. “Civilians must be protected, and the laws of war strictly adhered to.

“There must be prompt, thorough and independent investigations into these latest grave attacks on civilians and civilian infrastructure, and those responsible must be held to account.”