More than eight million people internally displaced in Ukraine: United Nations

Sixty-three per cent of current internally displaced people in Ukraine are estimated to be women

More than eight million people are estimated to have been internally displaced by Russia's war in Ukraine, having fled their homes and stayed within the country, the United Nations said on May 10.

This is in addition to the more than 5.9 million Ukrainians who have left the country entirely since Moscow invaded on February 24.

The figure for the number of internally displaced persons (IDPs) as of May 3, issued by the UN's International Organization for Migration (IOM), is up from the estimate of 7.7 million that the IOM gave as of April 17.

"The needs of those internally displaced and all affected by the war in Ukraine are growing by the hour," said IOM director general Antonio Vitorino.

"Access to populations in need of aid remains a challenge amid active hostilities, but our teams are committed to continue delivering urgent assistance inside Ukraine and in neighbouring countries." The IOM conducted its latest survey between April 29 and May 3.

Sixty-three per cent of current IDPs are estimated to be women. Almost half of the IDPs have fled their homes in the eastern region of Ukraine, where Russia is now concentrating its assault.

More than 3.9 million people are estimated to have fled their homes in the east; 1.65 million have fled the Kyiv region and 1.3 million have fled the north. The survey found that 36% of IDPs — 2.9 million people — are now in the relatively safer west of the country.