At least 240 civilians have been injured and 64 killed since Russian troops entered Ukraine, the United Nations said.

However, the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) warned the figures will rise over the coming days.

Hundred of thousands of people are without power or water, while more than 160,000 people had been internally displaced it said.

Some 116,000 people have been forced to flee across international borders into neighbouring European countries, with Ukraine’s government estimating as many as 5 million refugees in a worst-case scenario.

Hundreds of homes had been damaged or destroyed, while bridges and roads damaged by shelling had left some communities cut off from supplies.

UN agencies and humanitarian partners had been forced to suspend operations in Ukraine due to the deteriorating security situation, OCHA said.

“The ongoing conflict continues to have severe human costs, causing a growing number of civilian casualties, interrupting livelihoods and damaging critical civilian infrastructure, including hundreds of homes, water and sanitation infrastructure, schools and health facilities.”

It warned the conflict came as Covid-19 cases within Ukraine soar, with case numbers rising 555% in 10 days, putting additional pressure on the country’s already-stretched health system.

“The current situation is exacerbating an already dire humanitarian situation in the [Donbass] region and generating new multisectoral needs across the country,” OCHA said.

Source: dpa/MIA