The Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) warned Friday that 700,000 more people would be in need of assistance this year compared with 2016 as a result of protracted fighting in east Ukraine.

The increase would raise the total number of people in need of aid to 3.8 million, according to the office.

Needs assessments for 2017 reveal that the closer people live to the contact line dividing government and rebel held areas in eastern Ukraine, the greater their humanitarian needs are.

This is particularly true for the elderly, women and children who make up over 70 percent of those affected by ongoing clashes, OCHA highlighted.

OCHA also warned that government-imposed bureaucratic barriers related to the trade of certain goods such as food and medical supplies across the contact line "remains a serious constraint to alleviating the humanitarian crisis."

According to the UN, close to 10,000 people, of which 2,000 are civilians, have been killed since the conflict began in mid-April 2014. Enditem

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