UN officials have called for swift investigation of violence against women and for strengthened measures to protect children in Ukraine, AFP reported. At yesterday’s meeting of the organization, convened at the request of the United States and Albania, Sima Bahous, UN Under-Secretary-General and UN Women Executive Director pointed out that the war must end immediately.

Russia once again rejected accusations against it by other Security Council members and called for respect for the "presumption of innocence". Russian Deputy Permanent Representative to the UN Dmitry Polyansky said that the purpose of Russia's "special military operation" was "to save the future of Ukraine." In the Security Council, Russia has a right to veto and may not allow any investigation or sanctions against itself. On the other hand, the UN Human Rights Council, which Russia was expelled from on Thursday by a decision of the organization's General Assembly, has the power to launch investigations, AFP writes.

Meanwhile, Britain has been verifying last night's reports of a chemical attack in Mariupol, as a representative of the local authorties said they could not confirm Azov reports of a chemical attack. The battle for the port of Mariupol where the ship Tsarevna with Bulgarian crew onboard is situated, continues.