Civilian deaths in Ukraine in July hit highest level since May 2022: UN

At least 437 civilians were killed and 2,610 injured in Ukraine in July, the UN Human Rights Monitoring Mission said.The United Nations has reported that civilian deaths in Ukraine have reached their highest level in July since the opening months of Russia’s invasion in 2022.“At least 437 civilians were killed and 2,610 injured in Ukraine in July, a 30 percent increase compared with the previous month and a 70 percent increase compared with July 2025,” the UN Human Rights Monitoring Mission said in a statement.Recommended Stories list of 3 itemslist 1 of 3Japan protests as Russia’s Putin visits disputed Kuril Islandslist 2 of 3‘New level of danger’: Drone incidents scare Europe amid Russia-Ukraine warlist 3 of 3Zelenskyy says Ukraine has sent proposals to US to end war with Russiaend of listThe UN said it has verified the deaths of 16,874 civilians since Russia’s invasion, but warned that this is likely a significant underestimate since it cannot confirm casualties in parts of Ukraine occupied by Russian forces.That figure includes the port city of Mariupol, which Russia laid siege to at the start of the war and where thousands are widely thought to have died.At least 54 civilians were killed in Kyiv during the month – “one of the hardest hit cities”, the UN said.Russian authorities, for their part, reported an increase in the number of civilians killed to 79 in July.Russian military official ‘killed in blast’On Thursday, Russian news agencies, citing ⁠the country’s Federal ⁠Security Service (FSB), said a Russian ⁠military official ⁠was killed in an ‌explosion in Russian-annexed Crimea.Also on Thursday, a Russian drone hit a passenger train in southern Ukraine’s Odesa region, killing two of the train’s crew, according to Ukrainian officials.Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy accused Russia of continuing a campaign of “terror” by attacking the train on Thursday, which he said was carrying 340 people.