Russian Strikes Damage Kyiv's Iconic Cathedral, Kill Nearly Nine

<p><em><strong>Edited by:</strong> Rana Taha</em></p> <p>The main cathedral in Kyiv's historic Pechersk Lavra monastery complex caught fire after Russia launched a major overnight missile attack on several Ukrainian cities, officials said Monday, calling it the heaviest air assault on the capital in two weeks.</p> <p>The Ukrainian military said Russia launched 70 missiles and 611 drones. Citing preliminary data, it said air defenses shot down 50 of the missiles and 582 of the drones.</p> <p>At least nine people were killed.</p> <h2>What do we know about the attack on the Pechersk Lavra monastery?</h2> <p>The strikes sparked a blaze on the roof of the capital's historic Dormition Cathedral, located within the UNESCO World Heritage-listed Kyiv Pechersk Lavra monastery complex.</p> <p>"A brutal assault on our people and our heritage. This is the true face of Russia's Orthodox values," Ukrainian Prime Minister Yulia Svyrydenko wrote on X, calling the site a "priceless cultural landmark".</p> <p>She shared a video purportedly showing the top of the cathedral engulfed in flames.</p> <p>Other visuals showed a gaping hole on one side of the church.</p> <p>Tymur Tkachenko, head of the Kyiv City Military Administration, accused Russia of deliberately striking "the heart of one of the largest Christian shrines."</p> <p>Metropolitan Epiphanius, head of the Orthodox Church of Ukraine, denounced the attack as another Moscow "crime against humanity, against history, against Christianity."</p> <p>The Kyiv Pechersk Lavra</p> <p>monastery was founded in 1051 and is a prominent symbol of Ukrainian spiritual and cultural history. It has been listed as a UNESCO World Heritage site since 1990.</p> <p>The monastery complex, adorned with golden domes, is home to a sprawling labyrinth of underground caves.</p> <h2>Moscow denies striking historic monastery</h2> <p>Russia has denied it struck the Pechersk Lavra monastery in Kyiv, with the Foreign Ministry saying it was a "crude fake" accusation by Ukraine and the West.</p> <p>Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova accused European politicians of rushing to falsely condemn Moscow, while keeping silent about deadly Ukrainian strikes on a ​student dormitory and on a museum in Crimea, which Russia annexed from Ukraine in 2014.</p> <p>Earlier on Monday, Russia's Defense ministry said it had not struck the 1000-year-old monastery but rather what it described as military factories, blaming the damage to the religious complex on a US-made Patriot air defense missile.</p> <h2>Ukraine reports large-scale Russian attacks on Kharkiv</h2> <p>Air raid sirens echoed across much of Ukraine in the early hours of Monday as Russia launched its latest barrage.</p> <p>Five rescue workers were killed in Kharkiv during firefighting operations, Interior Minister Igor Klymenko said. He added that at least nine other people were wounded.</p> <p>In Kyiv,</p> <p>residents heard a series of powerful explosions across the capital as they sought shelter underground.</p> <p>"Kyiv is under the main strike. There is significant destruction of civilian infrastructure," Klymenko said.</p> <p>Mayor Vitali Klitschko said strikes were reported in three districts of Kyiv, with at least 23 people injured.</p> <p>The strikes also damaged electricity lines, leaving about 140,000 Kyiv residents without power, according to city authorities.</p> <h2>Russia says repelling Ukraine drones</h2> <p>Russia on Monday also reported a Ukrainian drone strike</p> <p>in the city of Tula, around 200 kilometers (120 miles) south of Moscow.</p> <p>Three people were killed and three others were injured in the attack, regional governor Dmitry Milyaev said in a statement.</p> <p>Moscow was also fending off a drone attack overnight, its mayor said.</p> <p>Both Ukraine and Russia deny deliberately targeting civilian infrastructure in the war that has spanned over four years.</p> <p><em>(Disclaimer: This report first appeared on <strong>Deutsche Welle</strong>, and has been republished on <strong>ABP Live</strong> as part of a special arrangement. Apart from the headline, no changes have been made in the report by <strong>ABP Live.</strong> for DW)</em></p>

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