War in Ukraine: “For a year, life has been a real hell for the Ukrainian people”

Deaths, destruction, sexual violence, “enforced disappearances” … Several members of the Security Council stressed on Friday the suffering of Ukrainians for a year, the Secretary-General of ONU To sum them up in a few words: their “life is a real hell”.

A minute’s silence

Russia’s invasion of Ukraine A year ago to the day It has “caused death, destruction and massive displacement”, causing “unspeakable suffering”, Antonio Guterres declared before the Security Council, which observed a minute of silence to mark the anniversary. “Life is hell for the Ukrainian people,” stressed the Secretary-General.

“Therefore, about 17.6 million people, or nearly 40% of the population, are in need of humanitarian assistance and protection,” he said, adding that 40% of people do not have enough to eat. “The war has sparked a migration crisis unprecedented in Europe for decades” Eight million refugees More than five million displaced people across Europe and the country. And “more than half of Ukrainian children are forced to leave their homes,” he added, stressing the risks of “violence, abuse and exploitation.”

Sexual violence

The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights has also “documented dozens of cases Sexual violence “Related to the conflict against men, women and girls”, without forgetting “hundreds of enforced disappearances and arbitrary detention of civilians”. “Infrastructure is being damaged: water, energy and heating systems have been destroyed in the middle of a freezing winter”, said Antonio Guterres.

“A year of inhumane suffering for the Ukrainian people whose resistance and courage are admired,” commented French Foreign Minister Catherine Colonna. “A year of abuses, executions, bombings against civilians, torture, rape, kidnapping and deportation of children”. “At least 6,000 Ukrainian children have been abducted and relocated to Russia,” US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken said. “With these Russian atrocities, day after day, it is easy to become desensitized to the horror and lose the ability to be shocked and outraged. But we cannot allow the crimes committed by Russia to become the new normal,” he added, hoping those responsible would be held accountable.

A “just and lasting” peace

“Ukraine is not a victim,” responded Russian UN Ambassador Vassily Nebenzia. “We cannot accept a nest of Russophobic wasps on our border,” he added.

On Thursday, the UN General Assembly passed a resolution calling for a “just and lasting” peace and demanding the immediate withdrawal of Russian troops from Ukraine. The Security Council, where Russia has a veto, has not taken any decision on the matter despite holding more than 40 meetings in a year.

(AFP)Show comments