Nearly 300,000 people have been displaced in Ukraine, with more than 5 million people living in conflict-affected areas, UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric said here Monday, quoting information from the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA).

"Humanitarian needs in areas under the control of armed groups are reportedly significant, with local organizations and Red Cross teams having nearly exhausted their supplies and with only limited amounts of aid having been delivered due to insecurity," Dujarric said at a daily news briefing here.

"Items such as winter clothing, shoes, medicine, and food are also in short supply," the spokesman said. "Some areas in the east have only limited or no access to drinking water and diesel generators are needed to power water pumps and treatment units."

According to the spokesman, the office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights will release a report on Ukraine in Geneva, Switzerland, Friday, which will cover the situation of Ukraine for the period from Aug. 18 and Sept. 16.

Military clashes between Ukrainian government troops and independence-seeking militia, which started in March in the eastern parts of the country, have claimed at least 2,600 lives and displaced approximately 260,000 people.

Eastern towns such as Donetsk and Luhansk are among the worst affected areas in the country, with almost 94 percent of civilians displaced.

The fighting has also caused lack of access to basic necessities, such as water and food, as well as power shortages, alongside severe damage to infrastructure, including buildings and roads. Endite

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