Approximately 40,000 Ukrainian civilians have been killed or wounded by Russian military troops, dating to Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February, according to a report from The New York Times.
Citing the Times article, an unnamed Ukrainian government official says the country has lost roughly 40,000 citizens to destruction inflicted by Russian forces.
The official also states that approximately 3 million Ukrainian people are "now living under Russian occupation."
The Times report represents a noticeable gap from last week's speculation, when Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said that at least "tens of thousands" of civilians had been killed in the first three months of war, and that roughly 60-100 Ukrainian soldiers were getting killed daily.
Zelenskyy also estimated that 500 Ukrainian civilians were wounded in Ukraine's Donbas region, an area of significant military conflict between the countries.
The majority of death tolls and wounded estimates have come from Ukraine officials.
Conversely, the Russians have released minimal information about Russian casualties in the past two months.
On Wednesday, the United Nations Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights reported that 4,253 civilians have been killed, with another 5,141 injured, though the office warns "the actual figures are considerably higher."
Citing a Washington Examiner report, Ukraine's prosecutor general's office has opened nearly 15,000 cases of alleged war crimes against Russia, which includes the targeting of civilians.
There are an additional 7,200 cases regarding the crime of aggression, which focuses on the planning and initiation of a large-scale act of aggression, using a state military force.
Citing other Russia-Ukraine war updates, provided by the Times: Exiled leaders from the Russian-occupied city of Mariupol "warned of a growing risk of disease because sewage systems are not working, dead bodies are rotting in the streets," and tens of thousands who remain in the ruin lack access to clean water.
Bodies of soldiers killed in the battle for the Azovstal steel plant have been returned to Ukraine.
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