A UN expert condemned on Tuesday a new wave of Russian aerial attacks on Ukraine. The recent attacks targeted densely-populated cities and towns across Ukraine as the war between the two countries rages on.

In her statement, UN Humanitarian Coordinator Denise Brown said:

For the people of Ukraine, the new year started with loss, pain, and anguish. For the third day in row, vast aerial assaults by the Russian Federation have caused death – including several children – and destruction of homes and other civilian infrastructure.

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy posted, “[Over t]he previous five days, the enemy has launched at least 500 missiles and drones toward Ukraine.” Many parts of the capital Kyiv have been left without electricity or water, as temperatures drop to -20 degrees celsius. The second-largest city in Ukraine, Kharkiv, also saw heavy air strikes in the last week. Ukraine’s First Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Emine Dzheppar posted footage of buildings damaged during the attacks. Russia has also attacked smaller cities such as Lviv, Odesa, Dnipro, Zaporizhzhia and others, causing fatalities and injuries, according to a statement from Zelenskyy.

In another post on Tuesday, Ukraine’s president called on his allies for further financial and military support to strengthen Ukraine’s air defenses. He said that if Ukraine failed to protect their citizens, then “Russian terror will further spread throughout Europe and beyond.”

The statement comes after the UN Security Council held an emergency meeting at Russia’s request on Saturday, following an attack on the Russian city of Belgorod. Russia alleged that Ukraine used prohibited cluster munitions in the strike, killing 18 people, including three children. Assistant Secretary-General in the UN Department of Political and Peacebuilding Affairs Khaled Khiari said in a statement that the UN “unequivocally condemn all attacks on cities, town and villages, in Ukraine and in the Russian Federation.” He continued, “Attacks against civilians and civilian infrastructure violate international humanitarian law, are unacceptable and must end now.”

Since the meeting, there have been further aerial bombardments of Ukrainian cities and towns, prompting the UN to release the statement Tuesday. Brown reminded Russia that “indiscriminate attacks against civilians and civilian infrastructure are strictly forbidden under international humanitarian law.”