Evacuations to Protect Civilians: Ukraine

Since Russia’s full-scale invasion in February 2022, the complexity and intensity of military operations in Ukraine have resulted in protection challenges rarely seen at such magnitude. The resulting devastation of civilian lives and livelihoods pose important questions about the existing conceptualizations of civilian harm mitigation (CHM) and Protection of Civilians (PoC) when applied to large-scale combat operations (LSCO). This briefing considers (preparedness for) large-scale civilian evacuations as an important means to protect civilians from harm. It reflects on lessons, challenges, and good practices as seen in Ukraine in order to explore how evacuations can contribute to PoC – particularly in the context of LSCO – and what role the military can fulfil therein.