The UN said on Thursday (21) that more than 7.7 million people had left their homes in Ukraine due to the Russian offensive, but remained within the country’s borders.

This figure, published by the UN’s International Organization for Migration (IOM), represents an increase from the balance on April 5, when the estimated total of IDPs was 7.1 million.

“Women and children, the elderly and the disabled, have been disproportionately affected and represent an extremely vulnerable group,” warned Antonio Vitorino, Director-General of IOM.

The invasion, launched by Russia on February 24, resulted in the flight of millions of people, including five million who fled the country.

This third IOM survey was conducted April 11-17. According to this survey, as of last Sunday, there were 7,707,000 displaced people in Ukraine, 60% of whom were women.

Also, according to estimates, around 3.47 million people fled the east of the country; 1.77 million from the north; and 1.46 million from the Kyiv region. Now, 37% of the displaced are in relatively safe areas in the western part of the region.

In addition, at least 2.7 million people returned to their homes last Sunday after being away for nearly two weeks. Despite this return, 29% of returnees consider their current place of residence to be “unsafe” and only 8.5% feel completely safe.