UNITED NATIONS, June 14 (Xinhua) -- The United Nations Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs Stephen O'Brien Wednesday called for prolonged ceasefire in eastern Ukraine so as to allow the restoration of water supply to tens of thousands of people.
"I am deeply concerned for the well-being of some 400,000 people on both sides of the 'contact line' in the Donetska Oblast of eastern Ukraine who have been without access to safe drinking water for four days due to shelling of the First Lift Pumping Station of the South Donbass Water Pipeline on June 11," O'Brien said in a statement, adding that water supply to another 700,000 people is also hanging in the balance.
The UN humanitarian chief called on all parties to the conflict "to immediately ensure a prolonged cessation of hostilities to allow critical repair and maintenance to restore the water supply, including the facilitation of any movements across the 'contact line'," said the statement.
He added that emergency services and aid agencies are working to provide water to affected communities.
Expressing concern of possible outbreaks of water-borne diseases and other health risks, O'Brien said that "I remind all parties to the conflict of their obligation to respect civilian areas and infrastructure and that the intentional disruption of access to sufficient quality water supply in conflict-affected areas is a clear violation of international humanitarian law."
More than 2,000 civilians were killed in eastern Ukraine since the start of an armed conflict in April 2014, the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said in a report published on May 31.
The armed clashes have also caused significant damage to housing and critical infrastructure, such as electricity, water, hospitals and schools, further aggravating the humanitarian situation in the restive area, according to the report.
