Briefing the United Nations Security Council on Monday, Mohamed Yahya, the UN deputy relief chief, warned that continued attacks on Ukraine's energy infrastructure are leaving millions without reliable access to electricity, water, and heating. Yahya condemned all attacks affecting civilians, essential civilian infrastructure, and humanitarian workers. He stressed that civilians and civilian objects must be protected wherever they are.
Yahya emphasized the deteriorating situation for millions of people across Ukraine, where civilians continue to face a barrage of attacks that have severely damaged energy infrastructure and other essential services. The recent destruction has left many without electricity, water, or heating as winter begins.
“The humanitarian situation has been deteriorating for months,” Yahya said, noting that “the past few days have brought more death, destruction and renewed fears of what another winter without reliable electricity and heating will bring.”
He cited several recent incidents as examples of the escalating danger to civilians, including the recent hit on a hospital in Kharkiv, a drone strike on a crowded railway station in Dnipro, and multiple attacks on energy infrastructure that have disrupted essential services for millions.
“The pattern is deeply disturbing,” Yahya said, adding that “civilians are being killed in places where they should be safe. On trains. In hospitals. While seeking humanitarian assistance.”
Although the UN cannot independently verify all reports of civilian casualties or damage to infrastructure within Russia, including in the Belgorod region, Yahya emphasized that civilians and essential services must be protected regardless of their location.
In addition, Yahya highlighted a recent development in Oleshky, a town currently under Russian occupation. A temporary pause in fighting allowed for some relief operations and the safe passage of civilians seeking to leave the area.
While this was not an official UN initiative, Yahya noted that it demonstrated how practical arrangements can be made amidst active hostilities when both parties are willing to cooperate.
“We cannot allow Oleshky to remain an isolated opening,” he said, urging all parties to agree upon and implement further measures to ensure safe passage for civilians and unhindered access for humanitarian aid in other regions of Ukraine.
The limits of humanitarian assistance
The UN official also cautioned that humanitarian aid cannot make up for the repeated destruction of Ukraine's essential systems.
“Humanitarian aid can help people survive power cuts – but it cannot replace an electricity grid that is repeatedly destroyed by attacks,” Yahya said.
He called on all parties to protect civilian infrastructure and ensure safe passage for those seeking refuge or fleeing conflict zones.
While the UN’s Winter Response Plan aims to assist more than two million people, Yahya emphasized that humanitarian efforts cannot replace a functioning electricity grid or water systems destroyed by ongoing attacks.
“We can provide generators – but we cannot generate enough power to keep an entire country warm,” he said.
“We can deliver emergency water supplies – but we cannot substitute for functioning water systems.”
The UN’s Winter Response Plan aims to provide essential supplies and services to the most vulnerable people and communities in Ukraine, including those displaced by the conflict and those cut off by active fighting. The plan includes providing emergency cash assistance, repairing damaged infrastructure with the help of local partner organizations, and ensuring access to life-saving healthcare.
However, Yahya warned that if attacks on critical infrastructure continue at this pace, humanitarian needs will quickly exceed what aid agencies can provide.
The briefing also addressed the growing risks faced by humanitarian workers, noting that 12 aid workers have been killed this year, nearly twice the number killed in the same period last year. Yahya called on all parties to respect and protect humanitarian personnel and assets.
“Attacks affecting humanitarian personnel and assets have risen sharply this year,” he said. “When humanitarian personnel and assets are attacked, assistance is delayed, disrupted or prevented from reaching civilians who need it.”
Search continues at aid distribution site following major attack
Meanwhile, also on Monday, the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) reported that search operations are ongoing at an aid distribution site in the Zaporizhzhia region that was attacked last week. Local authorities say that 55 bodies have been recovered and 45 people remain listed as missing. A drone strike on Sunday injured two emergency responders.
Attacks and front-line hostilities continue across Ukraine, with mounting reports of civilian casualties. Since Friday, at least 18 civilians have been killed and more than 90 others have been injured, including children. Among the damaged facilities was a center serving over 50 children with disabilities in the Poltava region.
Over the weekend, attacks on energy infrastructure caused power outages affecting over 900,000 households and businesses in the Dnipro and Zhytomyr regions. Monday morning, the Ukrainian Ministry of Energy reported new disruptions in 12 regions.
Aid organizations have been assisting injured people in Dnipro and providing emergency repair materials and blankets in the Kremenchuk region. In Kherson, the World Food Programme (WFP) and a local aid organization delivered 300 food kits to residents of the Ostriv district.
Despite funding constraints and limited access, humanitarian aid organizations reached more than 2.1 million people in front-line areas across Ukraine in the first nine months of the year. The ongoing conflict has caused widespread destruction and displacement, leaving millions without basic services as winter sets in.
Attacks on Ukraine’s civilian infrastructure constitute war crimes and crimes against humanity
In a report submitted to the UN General Assembly last month, the Independent International Commission of Inquiry on Ukraine found that Russian authorities had committed war crimes by directing attacks against civilian objects and crimes against humanity by carrying out inhumane acts through continuous attacks on Ukraine’s energy infrastructure.
The Commission investigated the impact of large-scale attacks by Russian armed forces on Ukraine’s energy infrastructure on civilians, particularly during the severe winter of 2025–2026. The Commission also examined the cumulative effect of these attacks since autumn 2022.
Last winter, millions of Ukrainians experienced intolerable living conditions. Prolonged exposure to the cold and lack of basic services put considerable strain on civilians' physical and mental health and forced them to constantly devise survival strategies.
Russia's intensified attacks across Ukraine continue to cause large-scale civilian casualties. Repeated attacks on energy infrastructure threaten to further exacerbate the suffering of civilians who are already facing devastating consequences.
The human toll
Since February 24, 2022, the UN has documented the deaths and injuries of over 73,400 Ukrainian civilians. From February 2022 to September 2026, more than 17,600 civilians were confirmed killed in Ukraine, including over 850 children. Additionally, more than 55,800 people were confirmed injured.
As these are UN-verified figures, the real numbers are believed to be much higher. According to human rights monitors, many reports, particularly from specific locations and from the immediate aftermath of February 24, 2022, are still being verified due to their large volume. Other reports could not be verified due to a lack of access.
Due to Russia’s ongoing war against Ukraine, more than 9.6 million Ukrainians remain forcibly displaced, including an estimated 3.9 million internally displaced people and at least 5.7 million refugees worldwide. Germany hosts the largest number of these refugees, followed by Poland.
Further information
Full text: Briefing to the UN Security Council on the humanitarian situation in Ukraine by Mohamed Yahya, UN Assistant Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs, on behalf of Tom Fletcher, Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator, delivered November 9, 2026
https://www.unocha.org/news/build-oleshky-expand-humanitarian-access-ukraine-un-deputy-relief-chief-urges-security-council