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Ukraine: ‘Relentless’ attacks rattle health system as winter approaches: WHO

Ambulances attacked, chronically ill patients lacking care and no peace in sight: for millions of Ukrainians, the run-up to another winter of war is just the latest life-or-death challenge they face, the UN health agency (WHO) said on Tuesday.

Speaking from Kyiv in the wake of deadly strikes on the Ukrainian capital by Russia on Sunday, WHO’s representative in the country, Dr. Jarno Habicht, told reporters in Geneva that over 800 drones and missiles were involved in the latest attack, making it one of the most extensive since the start of the war in February 2022.

“This is a reality [which] many aid workers, humanitarians, but most importantly, millions of Ukrainians are living day and night,” he said.

Dr. Habicht had just returned from the frontline Zaporizhzhia region which he said suffered “relentless” attacks, including on healthcare.

“The strikes are continuous,” he insisted, explaining that WHO is constantly delivering medical kits to the facilities where patients with trauma injuries receive care.

“We have daily injuries, unfortunately, across Ukraine,” he said.

The WHO official pointed to a concerning 12 per cent year-on-year increase in attacks affecting health infrastructure in the country. One fourth of the attacks are against ambulances, he said.

“If we think about non-war environments, when anybody calls an ambulance, this is for a reason,” he said. “This is for a reason of life and death… But in Ukraine, the ambulances are under attack.”

According to UN humanitarian affairs coordination office, OCHA, on Monday, casualties from the latest attacks were reported in a number of other cities including Odesa, Chernihiv, Kharkiv, Kremenchuk, Kryvyi Rih and Kherson.

Strikes also targeted energy infrastructure, disrupting power and water supplies ahead of the winter season, OCHA said.

“We need to prepare for a winter in war because we don't see peace in sight,” Dr. Habicht insisted.

Following his Zaporizhzhia visit and discussion with the authorities and health workers there, he highlighted the need to keep heating stations open as the cold season approaches and ensure that clean water is available in healthcare facilities.

Dr. Habicht also underscored the magnitude of the mental health burden of the conflict, which will “stay for generations”.

According to WHO’s latest Health Needs Assessment conducted in Ukraine in April, 70 per cent of people reported mental health issues, anxiety, depression and severe stress over the last 12 months, “directly linked to attacks on civilian infrastructure”.

The WHO representative added that as he visited hospital wards on Monday in Zaporizhzhia he saw a number of men and women over 60 in need of rehabilitation after a stroke. “All the other diseases are continuing at the time of war,” he said, stressing that “recovery cannot wait” until the conflict is over, as patients with chronic diseases such as cancer and heart conditions also need care.

“We have a very specific situation where we have ongoing war, humanitarian needs and the recovery is happening” all at the same time, he said.

Dr. Habicht called for increased funding for the humanitarian response in Ukraine while also urging support for recovery and restoration.

Lack of funds is a concern as in the first half of 2025 only 35.5 per cent of the required resources, or some $46 million, have been made available for humanitarian partners, he said, allowing WHO and its partners to reach one million people out of a targeted three million.

-Ends-

Ukraine attacks - health update - WHO

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