Ukraine: Situation Report, 16 Nov 2022 [EN/RU/UK]

FLASH UPDATE (15 hours ago)

UKRAINE – ESCALATION OF ATTACKS ACROSS THE COUNTRY Flash Update No.7

HIGHLIGHTS

• A new wave of attacks on Ukraine’s energy infrastructure this afternoon has left millions of people in all regions of the country without electricity, adding to the already grave energy crisis faced by millions of Ukrainians.

• The emergency power outages – which come on top of the ongoing scheduled cuts – also affect access to water and heating, at a time when temperatures are below zero in many parts of the country.

• Following the attacks, some Ukrainian regions like Lviv in the west, Zaporizhzhia and Odesa in the south and Chernihiv in the north have been completely disconnected from electricity.

• In Kyiv, the entire population – estimated at around 3 million people – was left without water today, and authorities informed they are working around the clock to restore the supply.

• Residential buildings were also hit in Kyiv and in Chabany and Vyshhorod towns in the outskirts of the capital. While search and rescue teams are still operating, authorities have confirmed that over 30 civilians have been killed or injured in the three localities.

• Humanitarians in Ukraine are working to support people facing the challenges imposed by the energy crisis. Over the past weeks, more than 430,000 people have received some sort of direct winter assistance, and nearly 400 generators have been distributed to ensure energy in hospitals, schools, and other critical facilities.

SITUATION OVERVIEW

A new wave of attacks on Ukraine’s energy infrastructure this afternoon has left millions of people in all regions of the country without electricity, adding to the already grave energy crisis faced by millions of Ukrainians. The emergency power outages – which come on top to the ongoing scheduled cuts – also affect access to water and heating, at a time when temperatures are below zero in many parts of the country. Today’s strikes happened just a few hours after the European Parliament passed a resolution declaring the Russian Federation a “state sponsor of terrorism”, stating that deliberate attacks and atrocities committed against Ukraine violate human rights law and international humanitarian law.

Following the attacks, some Ukrainian regions like Lviv in the west, Zaporizhzhia and Odesa in the south and **Chernihiv **in the north have been completely disconnected from electricity. Blackouts are also affecting large parts of the central regions of Vinnytsya and Dnipro, westernKhmelnitsk, northern-eastern Kharkiv and Sumy, southern Mykolaiv and the capital Kyiv. According to the Ministry of Energy, temporary power outages have affected all Ukrainian nuclear power plants.

In **Kyiv, **the entire population – estimated at around 3 million people – was left without water today, and authorities stated they are working around the clock to restore the supply. The attacks caused delays in trains and metro, and hours of traffic jams were reported across the city as people tried to rush to their homes when the air raid alarms were lifted, around 3 p.m., more than two hours after being activated. People in some parts of the city are also facing challenges with the heating system, with temporary cuts of internet and mobile data also reported in the past hours. In addition to energy infrastructure, residential buildings were also hit in Kyiv and in Chabany and Vyshhorod towns, in the outskirts of the capital. While search and rescue teams are still on operating, authorities have confirmed that over 30 civilians have been killed or injured in the three localities.

In Kharkiv, people had to be evacuated from metro stations, as the power cuts forced all electric transport to stop. In Odesa, the heating system stopped working, and the lack of electricity also led the stoppage of the region’s water pumps. In Dnipro, water supply has been affected, and in Dniproand Lviv, internet stopped working for several hours.

The strikes targeting energy infrastructure were not the only attacks affecting civilians and civilian infrastructure in Ukraine over the past 24 hours. In the Zaporizhzhia region, there have been reports of a new-born killed due to an airstrike that hit a maternity ward of a hospitalin Vilniansk, close to the front line. Children were also killed and injured due to hostilities in the Kherson and Berislav districts, of the Kherson region. Attacks also impacted people trying to receive assistance, as a Government facility in Zaporizhzhia used by volunteers to distribute supplies to people affected by the war was hit, killing and injuring some civilians who were there when the attack happened.

HUMANITARIAN RESPONSE

Humanitarians in Ukraine continue to work to support people affected by the war, including with winter supplies to help those facing the challenges imposed by the energy crisis. Over the past weeks, more than 430,000 people have received some sort of direct winter assistance, including thermal blankets, clothes, heating appliances, and repairs to their homes or centres hosting those displaced. In addition, the United Nations has been supporting the authorities with generators to ensure energy supply to critical facilities such as hospitals, schools, and heating points, where people can keep warm if their homes are disconnected from heating systems or electricity. Nearly 400 generators have already been delivered by the International Organization for Migration (IOM), UNICEF, the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) and the UN Office for Project Services (UNOPS), and the World Health Organization (WHO), with thousands more in the pipeline. The Government has informed the population that over 4,000 heating points have been established across all Ukraine’s regions, and the United Nations and humanitarian partners are providing supplies to these facilities.

For more information, please contact OCHA Ukraine:

Saviano Abreu*, *deabreuisidoro@un.org

HIGHLIGHTS

• Continuing attacks on energy infrastructure are leading to a major energy crisis in the country, with repeated cuts and power outages, including in the capital Kyiv.

• Over 165,000 people in villages retaken by Ukraine, including the city of Kherson, face dire humanitarian situation due to extensive damages and destruction of infrastructure.

• The priority of the humanitarians remains timely and critical assistance to recently retaken areas of Ukraine and addressing challenges related to winter and power cuts.

• During last four weeks, humanitarians sent at least seven convoys to support the people in retaken areas of Kharkivska and Khersonska oblast, including the city of Kherson.

ANALYSIS

The humanitarian situation, including in recently retaken areas of Kharkivska and Khersonska oblasts. Almost nine months into the full-scale war, hostilities and attacks persist across Ukraine, particularly in the east and south of the country, damaging critical civilian infrastructure – especially energy – and increasing the urgent needs of millions of people. Over the past weeks, waves of attacks on energy infrastructure have forced the country to adopt emergency power outages in all Ukrainian regions. Millions are facing constant power cuts, and the lack of energy is also affecting water pumping, adding to the previous challenges faced by millions of people to access clean water or run their heating systems at home. On 15 November, for example, a new wave of missile attacks – the largest on energy infrastructure since the start of the war, according to the Ministry of Energy – left millions of people in Ukraine without electricity, water or heating. This came at a critical time when the temperature is dropping below zero, raising concerns about a serious humanitarian crisis during the harsh Ukrainian winter if people are unable to heat their homes.

The attacks on Ukraine’s energy infrastructure came just a few days after the Government recovered control of the city of Kherson and dozens of other towns and villages in this southern region of the country, which had been taken by Russian forces in the first weeks of the war in early March. The security situation in this part of the country remains highly volatile, with fighting and attacks reported across the new frontline and some of the areas which remain outside the control of the Ukrainian Government. Civilian infrastructure is being devastated, adding to an already complex situation on the ground.

In Kherson city, for example, people have not had water and electricity for over two weeks, while markets are running low on food, most shops are empty, pharmacies and health facilities have no medicines, and people can only rely on locally produced fruits and vegetables, according to humanitarians who visited the city over the last days. Khersonska oblast Military Administration urged residents of the city and other recently retaken areas to evacuate to safer regions of Ukraine, informing that the levels of destruction and limited access to essential services will make it nearly impossible for the Government to ensure people in these areas can meet their basic needs.

In other parts of the oblast recently retaken by Ukrainian forces, including Novovorontsovka, Novooleksandrivka, Velyka Oleksandrivka and Vysokopillia, humanitarians have reported a dire situation, as people face similar challenges as in Kherson city. Local authorities report that a large part of the infrastructure of the retaken areas has been damaged, including up to 70 per cent in Novovoskresenske village, where new attacks were recorded on 8 November. Local authorities also report very limited functional social services, with pressing needs in various humanitarian sectors.