One-third of Ukrainians displaced

One-third of Ukrainians have been driven from their homes and the scale of civilian casualties and infrastructure damage is "shocking," U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk said. 

Hi, I'm Nicole with an update on Ukraine.

NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg said Russia is actually regrouping and expected to mount a "major" offensive in the spring. Türk, speaking from Ukraine at the conclusion of a four-day visit Wednesday, said 6.5 million Ukrainians have fled their homes for shelter within the battered nation of more than 40 million people.

Another 7.8 million Ukrainians have been recorded as refugees across Europe, he said. As of last Thursday, 17,023 civilians had been killed since the war began Feb. 24, including 419 children, according to U.N. statistics. Türk said the number is likely much higher – and rising.

"I fear that there is one long, bleak winter ahead for Ukraine," Türk said. "The consequences of the war on the enjoyment of human rights for people in the country have already been devastating, and the prognosis is very worrying."

Freezing temperatures and lack of heat and even running water because of bomb-damaged infrastructure have sharply raised the risk for people already vulnerable across Ukraine, he said, among them the elderly, the very young, the poor and sick.