Last week, the Russian invasion of Ukraine entered its fourth week. Fighting between Russian and Ukrainian forces continued in the northern, eastern, and southern regions of Ukraine. Since the start of the invasion, Russian forces have failed to capture any regional centers other than Kherson, but have continued advances against Kyiv, Chernihiv, Kharkiv, Sumy, and Mykolaiv (BBC, 21 March 2022). Intense shelling of Mariupol city continued throughout the week, with Russian forces bombarding civilian infrastructure and blocking civilian access to food, water, electricity, and heat (Washington Post, 12 March 2022). In addition to remote violence targeting civilians, Russian forces carried out abductions of civilians in occupied territories, including mayors, members of local councils, activists, and journalists. Multiple people reported being tortured while in detention or otherwise pressured into cooperating with Russian troops, such as being filmed repeating pro-Russian narratives (Zmina, 18 March 2022).
For more information, including previous infographics and an interactive dashboard, visit our Ukraine Crisis research hub.
