Kira Obedinskaya has been reunited with her grandfather Alexsandr Obedinsky following the death of her father in Mariupol © National Olympic Committee of Ukraine

The 12-year-old daughter of a Ukrainian water polo player who was killed in the war-torn city of Mariupol is to receive financial support from the National Olympic Committee of Ukraine (NOCU), it has been announced.

Kira Obedinskaya, who became an orphan after the death of her father, is to be given UAH 25,000 (£685/$846/€800) in the first tranche of assistance from the NOCU.

She is also due to receive UAH 5,000 (£134/$165/€156) each month until the end of the year.

The funding comes after Kira's father, Eugine Obedinskiy, who previously captained Ukraine's national water polo team, was reportedly killed by a Russian sniper in March.

The NOCU said Kira tried to escape Mariupol, which has been under heavy bombardment from Russian forces, by foot but she was injured by a mine explosion.

Kira was then taken to the Russian-occupied territory of Donetsk where she was able to contact her grandfather, Alexsandr Obedinsky, who had not known of her whereabouts since the death of Eugine.

"She was in a hospital bed, she had shrapnel wounds around her ear and face and her legs, but she seemed OK," said Alexsandr in a report by the Guardian last month.

"I was so relieved.

"But she told me she's in Donetsk, and it seems like she's on her own.

"She told me they're taking her to a Russian city."

The NOCU said Kira has since been reunited with her grandfather thanks to the efforts of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, ending a two-month journey.

Mariupol has been under heavy bombardment from Russian forces since the start of the war ©Getty Images
Mariupol has been under heavy bombardment from Russian forces since the start of the war ©Getty Images

"She couldn't believe it was happening to her," Alexsandr told the Guardian.

"All of us need positive emotions now, and so does Kira."

Alexsandr, who has received the funds from the NOCU to support his granddaughter, has become the guardian of Kira whose mother died when she was a baby.

"We'll stay in Chernivtsi [a city in south-western Ukraine] for now, and I don't know what [the] future holds for us," Alexsandr added.

"We'll see how life turns out."

Zelenskyy claimed last month that "tens of thousands" of civilians have been killed in Mariupol since it came under attack from Russian forces.

The United Nations Human Rights Office believes the number of civilian deaths in Ukraine rose to 3,280 yesterday but added that the actual figure is likely to be considerably higher.

An estimated 12.7 million people have become displaced, according to the United Nations Refugee Agency.

It reports that five million Ukrainians have travelled to other countries, while 7.7 million are displaced.