Weekly Update #48
January 30

As the war enters a new phase with an expectation for even more intense battles, there is a general sense of unease with heightened security concerns. Dnipro residents in particular experienced the aftermath of a deadly missile attack on an apartment building, which was part of a renewed round of attacks on Ukrainian cities on 14 January, the first time in nearly two weeks.

Russian forces launched another massive series of missile and drone strikes across Ukraine on January 26, launching 55 air- and sea-based missiles. Ukrainian air defense shot down 47 of the 55 missiles and all 24 Shahed 136 and 131 drones. Several missiles struck critical infrastructure in Vinnytsia and Odesa oblasts, targeting energy facilities. Emergency shutdowns of electricity were ongoing in Kyiv city and region, as well as in Dnipropetrovsk and Odesa. Civilian casualties were reported in Kyiv. Kherson and Sumy oblasts.

It was reported by the Ukrainian Defense Ministry that Russian forces have enough drones for only a few more large-scale strikes unless they have received or will soon receive a new shipment of drones from Iran. Russian Duma Chairman Vyacheslav Volodin met with Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi in Tehran on January 23 to expand bilateral cooperation efforts, conversations that may have included discussions on the provision of Iranian-made weapons systems to Russia.

Russian occupation officials are reportedly continuing to “nationalize” property and close places of worship belonging to the Ukrainian Evangelical Baptist Christian communities in occupied Zaporizhia Oblast in an effort to establish the Kremlin-affiliated Moscow Patriarchate Orthodox Church as the dominant faith in the region.

Russian sources claimed that Ukrainian forces relaunched counteroffensive operations near Kreminna.

Russian forces continued ground attacks around Bakhmut, on the western outskirts of Donetsk City, and in the Vuhledar area. Ukrainian officials reported that Russian forces in Zaporizhia Oblast are not conducting offensive operations at the size or scale necessary for a full-scale offensive.

Sources: UNHCR Ukraine situation Flash Update #39

Financial Times: Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in maps — latest updates

ISW: Ukraine Conflict Updates

ISW: Russian Offensive Campaign Assessment - 01/26/2023

ISW: Ukraine Project

ECHO Daily Flash of 27 January 2023

CIVILIAN CASUALTIES

(As of January 23, 2023)

Civilian casualties from 24 February 2022 – 23 January 2023

The Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) recorded 18,483 civilian casualties in the country. This included:

a total of 7,068 killed (2,800 men, 1,895 women, 180 girls, and 223 boys, as well as 35 children and 1,935 adults whose sex is yet unknown)
a total of 11,415 injured (2,504 men, 1,779 women, 241 girls, and 330 boys, as well as 267 children and 6,294 people whose sex is yet unknown)

Civilian casualties from 1 to 22 January 2023

OHCHR recorded 504 civilian casualties:

132 killed (48 men, 36 women, 4 girls, 4 boys, as well as 40 adults whose sex is yet unknown); and
372 injured (112 men, 53 women, 7 girls, 8 boys, as well as 13 children and 179 adults whose sex is yet unknown).

Most of the civilian casualties recorded were caused by the use of explosive weapons with wide area effects, including shelling from heavy artillery, multiple launch rocket systems, missiles and air strikes.

OHCHR believes that the actual figures are considerably higher, as the receipt of information from some locations where intense hostilities have been going on has been delayed and many reports are still pending corroboration. This concerns, for example, Mariupol (Donetsk region), Izium (Kharkiv region), Lysychansk, Popasna, and Sievierodonetsk (Luhansk region), where there are allegations of numerous civilian casualties.

Source: OHCHR Ukraine: civilian casualty update 23 January 2023

THE HUMANITARIAN RESPONSE

Humanitarian aid in Ukraine

According to the Cabinet of Ministers, the Ukraine Recovery Plan will be the largest reconstruction project since World War II. Currently, the total amount for the recovery from already identified sources is about 110 billion hryvnias (US 3 billion). In total, this year Ukraine expects to receive US 17 billion for high priority restoration of damaged and destroyed property. The government has identified four key sources of funding, including confiscated Russian funds from the state budget, funds from international partners, and funds from donors worldwide collected via the United 24 platform.
Discussions on a joint demining project move forward between WFP, FAO, and Fondation Suisse de Deminage (FSD), as a crucial part of phasing out the need for humanitarian assistance for thousands of farmers.
On 22 January, WFP chartered vessel, MV Amira Hana left carrying 30,000 mt of wheat in support of the humanitarian response in Ethiopia. According to the latest operational figure published by the Joint Coordination Centre, as of 18 January, the total tonnage of grain and other foodstuffs exported from the three Ukrainian ports is 17,821,511 mt. A total of 1,310 voyages (650 inbound and 660 outbound) have been enabled so far. As the grain price in the global market is heavily influenced by the level of Ukraine’s export, the importance of keeping the Black Sea corridor operational has been hailed by the international community. The continued export of grain is also an important activity for the local economy, keeping the grain flow allows farmers to be self-reliant.
As of the beginning of 2023, Ukraine is sufficiently supplied with routine vaccines, and the MoH monitors compliance with supply schedules and the availability of vaccines Ukrainians can receive free of charge all the vaccines required for immunization in line with the National Vaccination Calendar According to 2022 data, the level of vaccination coverage in Ukraine remains lower thanrecommended by the World Health Organization.
Throughout the eleven months of the full scale war, the MoH of Ukraine, together with the European Commission, continues to arrange evacuation flights for citizens who suffered as a result of the war. The main groups of patients transported to foreign clinics are children and adults with complex mine blast injuries and burn injuries, children with oncological conditions, as well as people with conditions that require complex specialized treatment.
The Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine ratified the agreement between Ukraine and the European Union on Ukraine’s participation in the EU 4 Health programme. The MoH has submitted applications for participation in direct grants and Joint Actions specifically for EU state institutions
More than 4000 migrant doctors have found employment in health care facilities in other regions. The number includes 2014 doctors, 1523 specialists ( midwives, paramedics, pharmacy assistants) and 795 technicians.
Since the invasion of Ukraine by the Russian Federation on 24 February 2022, health-care workers have been trained in reducing injuries and mortalities in response to any potential incidents involving toxic chemicals among civilian populations. With financial support from the Government of Germany, more than 2000 emergency medical responders and clinicians have been trained in chemical preparedness and response, including proper use of personal protective equipment and decontamination of patients after exposure to toxic chemicals. WHO in Ukraine supports the efforts of the MoH of Ukraine to assess and build capacity to manage onsite operations related to incident response and chemical hazards
IOM distributed 3,984 non-food items (NFI), reaching people in Zaporizhzhia, Donetsk, Lviv, Vinnytsia, Zakarpattia and Kharkiv regions. The distributions included jerry cans, winter clothes, solar lamps, bedding kits, kitchen sets, mattresses, and towels. IOM’s Camp Coordination and Camp Management (CCCM) programme reached 1,811 internally displaced people in Dnipropetrovsk, Kharkiv and Poltava regions through distributing 217 essential items and equipment to 11 collective centers. Distributed goods include freezers, fridges, multi-purpose cookers, microwaves, power banks, induction cookers, stoves, kitchen sinks, extension cords, ironing boards and clothes drying racks.

Sources: War in Ukraine: situation report from WHO Ukraine Country Office: issue No. 42, 25 January 2023

WFP Limited Emergency Operation - Ukraine External Situation Report #34 (22 January 2023)

IOM Operational Update

UNICEF calls for increased support for children’s education

The ongoing war in Ukraine has disrupted education for more than five million children, UNICEF warned today, calling for increased international support to ensure children do not fall further behind. The impact of 11 months of conflict only compounds the two years of lost learning due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and more than 8 years of war for children in eastern Ukraine.

Afshan Khan, UNICEF Regional Director for Europe and Central Asia, noted ”it is not an option to simply postpone children’s education and come back to it once other priorities have been addressed, without risking the future of an entire generation”.

The continued use of explosive weapons – including in populated areas - has meant that thousands of schools, pre-schools or other education facilities across the country have been damaged or destroyed. At the same time, many parents and caregivers are reluctant to send children to school due to safety concerns.

Inside Ukraine, UNICEF is working with the Government to help get children back to learning, in classrooms when it is deemed safe, and through online or community-based alternatives if in-person learning is not possible. While more than 1.9 million children were accessing online learning opportunities, and 1.3 million children enrolled in a combination of in person and online, recent attacks against electricity and other energy infrastructure have caused widespread blackouts and left almost every child in Ukraine without sustained access to electricity, meaning that even attending virtual classes is an ongoing challenge.

The situation outside of Ukraine is also concerning, with an estimated 2 out of 3 Ukrainian refugee children not currently enrolled in the host country’s education system. There are several factors behind this, including stretched education capacities and the fact that, at the start of the crisis and throughout the summer, many refugee families opted for online learning, instead of attending local schools, as they hoped to be able to return home quickly.

“UNICEF will continue working with the Government of Ukraine and the host countries’ Governments to deliver solutions to help children in conflict areas and those who have been displaced from their homes to continue their education,” said Khan.

Inside Ukraine, UNICEF is calling for an end to attacks on education facilities and other civilian objects, including the energy infrastructure upon which children and families depend. We also call for increased support in ensuring children have access to offline learning materials and supplies to ensure they continue learning and can remain connected to their peers and teachers; as well as support for Ukraine’s recovery plan, and efforts to rebuild and rehabilitate schools and preschools.

In refugee-hosting countries, UNICEF is calling for prioritization of the integration of Ukrainian refugee children into national education systems across education levels, especially early childhood education and primary education – with qualified teachers, learning materials and available spaces to support their face-to-face learning, development, and well-being. It is important that relevant authorities identify and overcome regulatory and administrative barriers that hinder children’s access to formal education across all levels and provide clear and accessible information to refugee families. Where access to education system cannot be immediately ensured, UNICEF calls for provision of multiple pathways to learning especially for secondary school-age children.

Source: War in Ukraine: Support for children and families

SES and UNICEF launch home safety campaign amid power outages

An information campaign has been launched in Ukraine to raise awareness on the safe use of generators, gas burners, heating stoves, and candles, amid power and heating outages across the country.

The ‘Safety at Home in Time of War’ campaign, launched by the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) and the State Emergency Service (SES), follows 2710 fires that have occurred since the beginning of this year. Most are domestic fires caused by the improper use of alternative heating and lighting.

According to the data of the Ministry of Health of Ukraine, from November to December 2022, 868 cases of carbon monoxide poisoning were recorded in Ukraine, among them 215 children. The Director of the emergency Prevention Department reported that among the most common cases of emergencies are the explosion of gas burners inside houses and carbon monoxide poisoning. Consequently, raising awareness about safety rules among Ukrainians is essential to save many lives.

The campaign reminds Ukrainians to follow the rules of handling generators, gas appliances, stove heating and candles in order to save lives. It will appear on radio and television, online, and in buildings, elevators and outdoor advertising.

“Following attacks on energy and other critical infrastructure, millions of children in Ukraine often stay in cold homes without power supply, deprived of rights and a normal childhood,” says Murat Sahin, UNICEF Representative in Ukraine. “Their families have to use candles, gas burners and generators to have light and to keep warm, which is not always safe indoors. These simple rules on home safety are important to save the lives and health of children and their families.”

As part of the campaign, learning materials will be developed for children to help them understand important safety rules at home amid the war. It is also hoped that the materials will encourage children to pass this knowledge on to their parents.

The safety rules include the following:

Since generators emit carbon monoxide, they should always be placed outside, at a distance of six meters from windows and doors.
Gas burners are designed for heating food and only in small dishes. It is dangerous to heat burners for a long time. Use burners outside or in a room with ventilation. Use only certified products at licensed sales points and follow the manufacturer's instructions.
Check stoves and chimneys before use. Problems may arise if chimneys are not cleaned and there are cracks.
Candles should be placed on a stable surface away from flammable materials.
It is dangerous to turn on all home devices at the same time, as this can overload the network.

Find more about safety rules at home during power outages in this article on the State Emergency Service website.

Source: SES and UNICEF launch home safety campaign amid power outages

UNHCR Executive Director reiterates scaled-up response for Ukraine

UN Refugee Agency chief, Filippo Grandi, warns humanitarian needs in the country remain acute and funding must be sustained and expanded.

Mr. Grandi met with Ukrainian President Zelensky and other leading government offices. He also travelled through the south and east of the country, seeing the destruction and devastation, meeting seven heads of Oblast administrations, several mayors and many war-affected civilians in Odesa, Mykolaiv, Zaporizhzhia, Dnipro, Kharkiv, and Kyiv. During these visits, the High Commissioner applauded the

work of civil society organizations, recognized the resilience of the people of Ukraine, and appreciated the strong leadership of authorities at central and regional levels, vowing that UNHCR will continue supporting displaced communities.

UNHCR has substantially scaled up its response in the country since February last year, as part of the inter-agency response under the UN Humanitarian Coordinator. The response includes expanding operations further east and south to hard-to-reach and newly-accessible areas, delivering cash and in-kind assistance to war-affected civilians, giving emergency shelter repair kits to those with damaged homes, carrying out housing repairs, and providing legal support and psychological counselling for those suffering the trauma of war. More than 4.3 million Ukrainians have been supported by UNHCR through these and other services and assistance since the start of the invasion.

Noting that the UN appeals for both inside Ukraine and Ukrainian, refugee response will be launched in Geneva on 15 February. Grandi expressed hope that donors will continue to be generous in their support in the coming year.

During the High Commissioner’s visit, the Ministry Communities, Territories and Infrastructure Development and UNHCR launched a new collaborative platform called 'Ukraine is Home' that will help link humanitarian emergency shelter and housing programs with ongoing government recovery plans and programs, implemented with the support of international financial institutions, private sector and other actors. The UNHCR Representative in Ukraine signed an MoU with the Ministry formalizing the partnership, which aims to facilitate access to housing solutions for people whose homes have been damaged during the war.

Sources: UNHCR’s Grandi ‘appalled’ by destruction after six-day Ukraine visit

Moldova response to host Ukraine refugees lauded by UNHCR Chief

The UNHCR Chief, Filippo Grandi, congratulated the Government of Moldova on its decision to activate temporary protection for refugees fleeing Ukraine. The Moldovan people and Government have shown remarkable solidarity with refugees since the Russian invasion of Ukraine began nearly one year ago.

Despite many pressing economic challenges and limited resources, Moldovans opened their country and their homes. Almost 750,000 Ukrainian refugees entered in the past 11 months and over 102,000 Ukrainian refugees remain, almost half of whom are children.

The Government’s decision earlier this week to activate temporary protection is another concrete and tangible expression of continued and sustained solidarity with the Ukrainian people. It provides a more secure legal status for refugees and paves the way for a more sustainable and planned response. Temporary protection will help refugees access employment, become self-reliant, and will also allow them to contribute to their host communities until they can return home in safety and dignity. It also provides the framework for even more sustainable access to education and other basic services, providing stability during a great trauma and upheaval.

Since the beginning of the refugee influx, UNHCR has delivered more than US$100 million worth of assistance and support in Moldova, in addition to the contributions of other humanitarian and development actors, as well as direct bilateral donor support to the Government. Mr. Gaddi noted that it is imperative that the international community steps up to provide renewed support for the refugee response and for the communities generously hosting refugees in Moldova. This means urgent and enhanced development investments in the country, as well as significant international efforts to shore up and grow the country’s economy.

Sources: News Comment: UNHCR’s Grandi praises Moldova’s role in supporting Ukrainian refugees

HOLY FATHER ON UKRAINE

General Audience - January 25, 2023

In our thoughts and prayers, may the tormented Ukraine, so much afflicted, not be absent. This morning I had a meeting with the leaders of the different Confessions of faith that are in Ukraine – all united – and they told me about the pain of that people. Let us never forget, every day, to pray for definitive peace in Ukraine.

Nei nostri pensieri e nelle nostre preghiere non manchi la martoriata Ucraina, così tanto afflitta. Questa mattina ho avuto un incontro con i Capi delle diverse Confessioni di fede che sono in Ucraina – tutti uniti – e mi hanno raccontato il dolore di quel popolo. Non dimentichiamo mai, ogni giorno, di pregare per la pace definitiva in Ucraina.

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Angelus - January 29, 2023

And now I greet with great affection the boys and girls from Catholic Action from the Diocese of Rome! You have come on the “Peace Caravan”. I thank you for this initiative which is so precious this year because, thinking of the war-torn Ukraine, our commitment and our prayer for peace must be even more strong. Let us think of Ukraine and pray for the Ukrainian people, who are so badly treated. Let us listen now to the message that your friends here beside me will read to us.

E adesso con grande affetto saluto i ragazzi e le ragazze dell’Azione Cattolica della Diocesi di Roma! Siete venuti nella “Carovana della Pace”. Vi ringrazio per questa iniziativa, tanto più preziosa quest’anno perché, pensando alla martoriata Ucraina, il nostro impegno e la nostra preghiera per la pace devono essere ancora più forti. Pensiamo all’Ucraina e preghiamo per il popolo ucraino, così maltrattato. Ascoltiamo ora il messaggio che i vostri amici, qui accanto a me, ci leggeranno.

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