UKRAINIAN CIVILIAN DEATH TOLL REACHES 1,119, UN SAYS

Sun 27 March 2022:

The United Nations human rights office said on Sunday that 1,119 civilians had so far been killed and 1,790 wounded since Russia began its invasion of Ukraine.

Some 15 girls and 32 boys, as well 52 children whose sex is as yet unknown, were among the dead, the United Nations said in a statement which covered the period between when the war began on February 24 and midnight on March 26.

The true casualty figures are expected to be considerably higher, the world body said, with reports delayed in some regions where intense hostilities are going on, while many reports still require corroboration.

3.8 million have fled Ukraine

More than 3.8 million people have fled Ukraine since Russia’s invasion a month ago, UN figures showed Sunday, but the flow of refugees has slowed down markedly.

The UN refugee agency, UNHCR, said 3,821,049 Ukrainians had fled the country — an increase of 48,450 from Saturday’s figures.

Around 90 percent of them are women and children, it added. Of those who have left, 2.2 million have fled for neighbouring Poland, while more than half a million have made it to Romania.

Red Cross denies helping to forcibly evacuate Ukrainians to Russia

The International Committee of the Red Cross has denied accusations that it helped organise or carry out forced evacuations of Ukrainians to Russia.

“The ICRC does not ever help organize or carry out forced evacuations. This applies everywhere we work. We would not support any operation that would go against people’s will and our principles,” the Geneva-based humanitarian organisation said in a statement published late Saturday.

The the statement appears to be a response to accusations by Roman Rukomeda, a Ukrainian political analyst who spoke to the Euractiv online media on Saturday. Rukomeda said “there is evidence of strange behaviour by the International Committee of the Red Cross and its head, who announced the decision to open an office in Russian Rostov to assist Russian terrorists in the illegal deportation of Ukrainian citizens”.

SOURCE: INDEPENDENT PRESS AND NEWS AGENCIES

___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

FOLLOW INDEPENDENT PRESS:

TWITTER (CLICK HERE)
https://twitter.com/IpIndependent