By Kyle Herda
Impunity Watch Reporter, Europe
KIEV, Ukraine – A United Nations report has come out that has revealed the toll of fighting in Ukraine, particularly since the cease-fire. According to the United Nations’ human rights office in Geneva, at least 331 people have been killed since the cease-fire was announced on September 5.
Despite the cease-fire, around 10 people have been killed each day in fights between Kiev and pro-Russians. Fighting has been particularly focused over the past month in Luhansk and Donetsk. In Donetsk, pro-Russians and Ukrainian military have been fighting daily over the control of a large airport, and nearby towns have been the targets of military shelling.
All-in-all, at least 3,660 people have been killed, and more than 8,756 have been injured, according to Gianni Magazzeni, a senior United Nations human rights official in Geneva. While the cease-fire has led to a sharp decline in fighting, what fighting has continued is enough to cause concern that the cease-fire will not hold.
NATO has shown a particular concern over the continued fighting. The new head of NATO, former Prime Minister of Norway and now secretary-general Jens Stoltenberg, has said that Russia must use “all of its influence” to ensure that pro-Russian fighters in eastern Ukraine respect the cease-fire, as well as Kiev.
In addition to NATO, Germany has come to Ukraine’s aid in order to help ensure the cease-fire holds. After passing customs in Poland, 112 trucks from Germany carrying humanitarian aid, over $12 million in supplies, have arrived in Ukraine. While Kiev did not want to let in earlier Russian trucks that Russia claimed contained humanitarian aid, Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko thanked German Chancellor Angela Merkel for this aid.
Further, German Foreign Office spokesman, Martin Schaefer, has said that “a joint Franco-German effort” will be coming in the next “hours or days”. France and Germany are also debating putting drones into Ukraine to help monitor the cease-fire. Already, two drones from Austria have been deployed into Ukraine. The hopes are that this increased monitoring, run by the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (“OSCE”), the same group responsible for the cease-fire, will assist in addressing the current problems in order to strengthen the cease-fire.
For more information, please see:
The New York Times – At Least 331 Have Died in Ukraine Since Start of Cease-Fire, U.N. Reports – 8 October 2014
Reuters – Death rate 10 a day in east Ukraine despite ceasefire: U.N. – 8 October 2014
RT – 112 trucks carrying German humanitarian aid enter Ukraine (VIDEO) – 8 October 2014
EurActive – Germany to send troops to Ukraine – 7 October 2014
The Wall Street Journal – Drones Arrive in Ukraine for Monitoring Mission – 6 October 2014
Voice of America – NATO Concerned Over E. Ukraine Cease-fire Violations – 6 October 2014
