The United Nations Office at Geneva
Multimedia Newsroom
UN Human Rights Office Spokesperson Ravina Shamdasani said Tuesday UN Human Rights Chief Volker Türk was outraged by the repeated large-scale attacks by the Russian Federation on energy infrastructure in Ukraine.
“The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk said he was outraged by the repeated large-scale attacks by the Russian Federation on energy infrastructure in Ukraine, following more strikes last night which shut down heating and electricity in major urban areas, including in Kyiv and Odesa. This as the people of Ukraine are gripped by extreme cold, with temperatures below minus 10 degrees Celsius at night.” said Shamdasani.
Addressing the bi-weekly press briefing in Geneva, the spokesperson said, “last night’s attacks with long-range weapons caused emergency power and heating outages in several regions.”
“In Kyiv City, the mayor has reported that 5,635 multi-storey residential buildings were left without heating this morning, nearly 80 per cent of which had only recently had heating restored after outages caused by a similar attack on the 9th of January,” she said.
“This means hundreds of thousands of families are now without heating and several areas, including a significant part of Kyiv, are also without water,” said the spokesperson.
“Civilians are bearing the brunt of these attacks, and they can only be described as cruel. They must stop,” said Shamdasani.
“It is appalling to see civilians suffering in this way. Targeting civilians and civilian infrastructure is a clear breach of the rules of warfare,” she said.
STORY: OHCHR / RUSSIA ATTACKS UKRAINE ENERGY INFRASTRUCTURE
TRT: 01:46
SOURCE: OHCHR
RESTRICTIONS: NONE
LANGUAGE: ENGLISH / NATS
DATELINE: 20 JANUARY 2026, GENEVA, SWITZERLAND
1. Wide shot, flag alley
2. Wide shot, Briefing room
3. SOUNDBITE (English) Ravina Shamdasani, Spokesperson for the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR):
“The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk said he was outraged by the repeated large-scale attacks by the Russian Federation on energy infrastructure in Ukraine, following more strikes last night which shut down heating and electricity in major urban areas, including in Kyiv and Odesa.”
3. Wide shot, Briefing room
4. SOUNDBITE (English) Ravina Shamdasani, Spokesperson for the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR):
“This as the people of Ukraine are gripped by extreme cold, with temperatures below minus 10 degrees Celsius at night.”
5. Wide shot, Briefing room
6. SOUNDBITE (English) Ravina Shamdasani, Spokesperson for the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR):
“Last night’s attacks with long-range weapons caused emergency power and heating outages in several regions.”
7. Wide shot, Briefing room
8. SOUNDBITE (English) Ravina Shamdasani, Spokesperson for the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR):
“In Kyiv City, the mayor has reported that 5,635 multi-storey residential buildings were left without heating this morning, nearly 80 per cent of which had only recently had heating restored after outages caused by a similar attack on the 9th of January.”
9. Wide shot, Briefing room
10. SOUNDBITE (English) Ravina Shamdasani, Spokesperson for the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR):
“This means hundreds of thousands of families are now without heating and several areas, including a significant part of Kyiv, are also without water.”
11. Wide shot, Briefing room
12. SOUNDBITE (English) Ravina Shamdasani, Spokesperson for the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR):
“Civilians are bearing the brunt of these attacks, and they can only be described as cruel. They must stop.”
13. Wide shot, Briefing room
14. SOUNDBITE (English) Ravina Shamdasani, Spokesperson for the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR):
“It is appalling to see civilians suffering in this way. Targeting civilians and civilian infrastructure is a clear breach of the rules of warfare.”
15. Wide shot, OHCHR headquarters
Similar Stories
1
1
1
Edited News | UNRWA , WHO
Gaza: Life-saving medicines blocked as killing continues, disease gains ground
In Gaza, a dire humanitarian situation marked by continuing violence, rodent infestations and the spread of diseases is being made worse by blockages of essential medical supplies, UN agencies warned on Friday.
1
1
1
Edited News | OHCHR , UNOG
UN Human Rights spokesperson Shabia Mantoo, warned against the continuing trend of involuntary returns of Afghan refugees and asylum-seekers from host countries to Afghanistan, in violation of international human rights and refugee law, at the bi-weekly press briefing in Geneva.
1
1
1
Edited News | IFRC , OHCHR
Lebanon's first responders face high risks amid conflict, with 116 killed since March.
1
1
1
Edited News | WHO
DRC Ebola outbreak: hundreds of suspected cases, no vaccine
A fast-spreading Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) has health workers rushing to stop transmission while the roll out of any potential vaccine is months away, the UN World Health Organization (WHO) said on Tuesday.
1
1
1
Edited News | OHCHR
A UN Human Rights Office report released today covers 19 months of large-scale violations of international law including atrocity crimes, from October 2023 to the end of May 2025.
1
1
1
Edited News | OCHA , UNICEF
At least six million people in Somalia are going days without enough food, UN aid teams warned on Friday, highlighting that nearly two million of this number are young children “at high risk of illness or death”.
1
1
1
Edited News | UNICEF , WHO
Children shot, stabbed and pepper-sprayed in occupied West Bank; scores of Gaza amputees denied prosthetics, aid teams warn
Israeli military operations and surging settler attacks in the occupied West Bank are killing and maiming Palestinian children, while in Gaza tens of thousands with life-changing injuries lack access to treatment and rehabilitation, UN agencies warned on Tuesday.
1
1
1
Edited News | WHO
The risk of hantavirus spreading to the general population is “absolutely low”, the UN World Health Organization (WHO) stressed on Friday.
1
1
1
Edited News | UNHCR , IFRC
Death and destruction have continued unabated in Lebanon while communities are still unable to return to their homes despite a ceasefire that began on 17 April, humanitarians said on Tuesday.
1
1
Edited News | WHO
Deadly hantavirus on board cruise ship may be transmitted among humans - WHO
Hantavirus victims on a ship in the Atlantic Ocean may have been infected prior to joining the cruise and human-to-human transmission on board cannot be ruled out – although it is rare - the World Health Organization (WHO) said on Tuesday.
1
1
1
Edited News | OHCHR
UN rights chief concerned by upheld convictions of Cambodian activists.