The report by the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights recorded 274 civilians killed and 1,763 wounded in May. That is a 93 percent increase compared to May 2025, when 191 deaths and 865 injuries were registered. Forty-five percent of the casualties resulted from missile and drone attacks, especially in cities far from the front line such as Kyiv and Dnipro.
Near the front line, short-range drones were the main cause of civilian casualties. Never since the start of the war have so many people been killed (64) and wounded (539) by drones in a single month. Since February 2022, the UN has recorded more than 16,000 civilians killed and over 46,000 wounded. The actual numbers are likely higher, as authorities have no access to Russian-occupied territories.
In parallel, Ukraine launched a massive drone attack on Russia on Friday. Russia’s Defense Ministry reported shooting down 185 drones within twelve hours over about a dozen regions. In the Bryansk region, one person was killed and another wounded. Drones were also repelled over Moscow, with 27 destroyed according to Russian sources.
Source: www.spiegel.de
