April 2025 was the deadliest month for civilians in Ukraine since September 2024 due to Russia's widespread use of ballistic missiles.
This is stated in the monthly report by the UN Human Rights Monitoring Mission in Ukraine (HRMMU).
“Krivyi Rih, Sumy, Dnipro, Zaporizhzhia, Kyiv, and Kharkiv were subjected to devastating attacks that resulted in numerous civilian deaths and injuries. One of the main reasons for this sharp increase in casualties was the massive use of ballistic missiles on major cities across the country,” said Danielle Bell, Head of the HRMMU.
The UN reported at least 209 people killed and another 1,146 injured in April.
During a ballistic missile strike on Krivyi Rih on April 4, 20 civilians were killed and at least 63 injured.
A week later, on Palm Sunday (April 13), two missiles hit the city of Sumy, killing at least 31 civilians and injuring 105 more.
Five days after that, on April 18, a missile strike on Kharkiv killed one person and injured at least 102 others.
On April 24, a missile and drone attack on Kyiv killed at least 11 civilians and injured 81 more.
This pattern of attacks on major Ukrainian cities has continued into May.
New missile and drone strikes on Kharkiv, Odessa, Zaporizhzhia, and Kyiv have again resulted in civilian casualties.
The HRMMU notes that these attacks have also caused a significant number of child casualties. In April, at least 19 children were killed and 78 injured — the highest confirmed monthly toll for children since June 2022.
Drone strikes in frontline areas accounted for 23% of all civilian casualties in April.
In total, from January to April 2025, 664 civilians were killed and 3,425 injured — a 59% increase compared to the same period in 2024.
