May saw highest civilian casualties in Ukraine caused by Russia since 2022, UN says
In May 2026, more civilians were killed or injured in Ukraine as a result of Russia's war than in any other month since the start of the full-scale invasion.
Source: UN Human Rights Monitoring Mission in Ukraine (HRMMU)
Details: HRMMU has verified that at least 274 people were killed and 1,763 others injured over the month.
It said the main reason for the high number of casualties last month was the use of powerful weapons by Russian forces in urban areas, which killed and injured dozens of people on multiple occasions.
For example, 12 civilians were killed and 42 others injured in a Russian attack using aerial bombs on Zaporizhzhia on 5 May. On 14 May, a Russian missile struck an apartment block in Kyiv, killing 24 people.
The intensification of hostilities has also contributed to civilian casualties. The UN noted that in previous years the number of casualties has consistently risen in spring and summer. This trend has continued in 2026, but the casualty figures have increased significantly.
Quote from Danielle Bell, head of HRMMU: "The civilian harm we documented was not limited to communities near the front line. In cities across Ukraine, repeated attacks with missiles and aerial bombs killed and injured civilians far from areas of active ground combat."
More details: In frontline hromadas, the main cause of civilian casualties was the use of short-range drones. In May, at least 64 people were killed and 539 injured in such attacks – the highest figures since February 2022. [A hromada is an administrative unit designating a village, several villages, or a town, and their adjacent territories – ed.]
Most of the casualties were recorded in Ukrainian-controlled territory, but some were also confirmed in Russian-occupied oblasts, including 21 people killed in the city of Starobilsk, Luhansk Oblast.
Background: The UN earlier reported that 2025 was the deadliest year for civilians in Ukraine, with the death toll nearly a third higher than the previous year.
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