The United Nations has raised its death toll estimate for the conflict in Ukraine to more than 6,400 -- an increase of at least 300 people since its last report on fatalities caused by fighting between Ukrainian government forces and Russian-backed separatists.
In its June 1 report, the UN human rights office said the death toll since fighting broke out in eastern Ukraine in mid-April 2014 is now at least 6,417, despite a decrease in indiscriminate shelling since a fragile truce deal was agreed in Minsk in February.
The UN report those killed include at least 626 women and girls, and that another 15,962 people have been wounded.
The report specifies that the latest figures are “a conservative estimate and the actual numbers could be considerably higher.”
It also says about 5 million people are suffering from the consequences of the conflict, including 1.2 million people who have been displaced inside the war-ravaged country.