GENEVA, July 28/ /ITAR-TASS/. Since early April, the Ukrainian military operation in the east of the country has caused the death of 1,129 people and 3,500 were injured, says a report of the United Nations Human Rights Monitoring Mission in Ukraine (HRMMU) of the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR), published on Monday. More than half of the fatalities are peaceful civilians. The number of displaced persons who stay in the country has reached 101,600 - 86% of them fled violence in the country’s east, the reports says.

It calls the “continuing deterioration of the human rights situation in eastern Ukraine, the rapid escalation of hostilities and the growing impact on the rest of the country” the main developments during the past month.

The report highlights negative economic consequence of the developments, saying that “the country’s economy remains in recession, with a consequent adverse impact on the right to work. Unemployment increased from 8% to almost 9% in the first 6 months of this year, the inflation rate has reached 16% and utility rates have increased by an average of 30%.” 163. “The Government has proposed that in order to finance the security operation against the armed groups in the east, as well as the repair and revitalisation of the Donetsk and Luhansk regions, the Ukraine budget would be amended,” the report says. “Currently the Government estimates that repair of east Ukraine will cost 8 billion UAH (about $750 million ). Social programmes would be cut by 4.6 billion (about $420 million ) while the defense and security sectors would grow by 8 billion UAH (about $750 million). The budget cuts would include a reduction of 2 billion UAH (about $180 million ) in unemployment and disability benefits; funding for education and health would also be cut. The salaries of State employees would not be adjusted to keep pace with inflation (currently at 16%),” it says.

UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay said, “The reports of increasingly intense fighting in the Donetsk and Luhansk regions are extremely alarming, with both sides employing heavy weaponry in built-up areas, including artillery, tanks, rockets and missiles.” She said, “Both sides must take great care to prevent more civilians from being killed or injured,” she added. “Already increasing numbers of people are being killed with serious damage to civilian infrastructure, which - depending on circumstances - could amount to violations of international humanitarian law. The fighting must stop.