As the first explosions rang out across Kyiv overnight on Monday, images began to circulate on social media showing flames rising above the Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra church complex, a UNESCO World Heritage site.
For millions of Ukrainians seeking shelter across the country — including an estimated 42,000 people who spent the night in the capital’s metro stations — the sight of the cathedral under attack came as a particularly painful shock.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy described the attack on the historic cathedral as “one of Russia’s most serious crimes against Christian culture to date” and urged G7 leaders meeting in France to increase their pressure on Moscow.
“It is very important that there be a response from the G7 countries, which are now gathering for their summit – and that this response be decisive and substantive: more pressure on the aggressor and more support for Ukraine’s air defence, especially anti-ballistic capabilities,” the Ukrainian president said.
Zelenskyy visited the scene on Monday morning together with Prime Minister Yuliia Svyrydenko and other members of his government, as rescue efforts continued and the bells of the Lavra again rang out across Kyiv, despite the damage the church had suffered.
