Russian missile attacks driving destruction, death, and injury in Ukraine

Four civilians died and 30 were injured on Jan. 8 after Russia’s fatal missile attack on Ukraine. The latest barrage, which struck several regions across the country, marks a grim new chapter in a 22-month-long war. Daily airstrikes are hitting civilian areas, including housing and shopping malls.

A previous massive attack was less than two weeks earlier on Dec. 29, when Russia launched more than 120 missiles, killing 30 civilians, injuring 130, and leaving many more beneath rubble. Many families were completely cut off from water, heating, and electricity.

Since the start of the conflict in February 2022, 3.6 million Ukrainians have been displaced inside the country and 6.3 million people globally. Casualties continue to rise, with estimates surpassing 10,000. In the coming year, 14.6 million Ukrainians will be in desperate need of humanitarian aid, and worldwide the war may lead to market instability, higher food prices, and an escalation of global hunger.

The recent attacks are a direct violation of international humanitarian law, which prohibits any attacks that destroy critical resources and threaten civilian survival. The impacted communities, which had been already struggling with widespread poverty, are seeing large-scale destruction of critical infrastructure, such as water, electricity, and gas systems, as well as schools and health facilities.

As Ukrainians struggle in winter weather and subzero temperatures, civilians urgently need heat, electricity, and water to survive. Vulnerable families across the country bear the brunt of the conflict. In the first year of the war, more than 40% of the country saw their energy networks impacted. As the conflict continues, and more infrastructure is destroyed, millions more may be forced to flee or require urgent need in 2024.

When the conflict began, Action Against Hunger launched the emergency response immediately. Coordinated from Kyiv, the teams support displaced people and host communities in hard-hit areas around Chernivtsi in the West and Dnipro, Kharkiv, Zaporizhzhia, Donetsk, and Sumy in the East. In the coming year, Action Against Hunger plans to extend the emergency work to the South, focusing on Odesa and Mykolaiv, where the organization will distribute food and basic supplies.

Every day that conflict rages on puts more civilian lives at risk. Continued and indiscriminate attacks also deteriorate living conditions and make the distribution of basic supplies challenging, particularly in areas close to the front lines.