The UN has confirmed that Russia killed 265 Ukrainian civilians in June

In June 2026, the number of civilian casualties in Ukraine rose as a result of Russian attacks. According to the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, at least 265 people were killed and another 1,816 were injured. 

Rosemary DiCarlo, the UN Under-Secretary-General for Political Affairs and Peacebuilding, reported this during a UN Security Council meeting. In total, since the start of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, 16,402 civilian deaths have been confirmed, including 802 children, and 48,428 people have been injured.

The UN representative condemned Russia’s July strikes on densely populated urban centers, emphasizing the need for a ceasefire and the achievement of peace in accordance with the UN Charter. For her part, Latvia’s Permanent Representative to the UN, Sanita Pavļuta-Deslande, noted that in the first seven days of July alone, 93 civilians were killed and more than 500 were wounded as a result of Russian shelling. She emphasized that Ukraine is exercising its right to self-defense by targeting Russia’s military logistics and energy infrastructure, while Russia is striking civilian targets, which is why Ukraine urgently needs to strengthen its air defense capabilities.