Nine killed, historic monastery on fire as Ukraine faces major Russian attacks

Kyiv is often referred to as the City of Golden Domes with its centuries-old skyline lit up with church cupolas, highlighting the city's rich spiritual heritage.

At its centre is the Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra, one of the oldest Christian monasteries in Europe and among the most important religious symbols of Ukraine.

The Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra is a symbol of Ukraine's spiritual and cultural history. ( AP: Dan Bashakov )

This week, its glistening domes became the backdrop of another evening of attacks in the Ukrainian capital.

After it was engulfed in smoke and flames, Ukrainian authorities said the Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra had taken a direct hit in one of Russia's largest aerial attacks since the start of the full-scale invasion.

The cathedral was badly damaged when a large-scale fire broke out after it was struck by a suspected Russian drone.  ( AP: Evgeniy Maloletka )

Father Makariy, a high-ranking clergyman, has been based at the 11th-century monastery for more than 20 years.

He was there when a suspected Russian drone came hurtling towards the UNESCO World Heritage site, striking directly in the centre of the Dormition Cathedral's roof.

"I jumped up," Father Makariy told AFP from the monastery, hours after the strike.

"My God, what is happening? There is smoke here, there is fire here, there are people, confusion, people shouting: 'Air raid alert! Attention! Everyone hide!' So I hid too, as best I could."

A large-scale fire broke out, quickly engulfing about 800 square metres, according to accounts reported by Ukrainian news agency RBC-Ukraine.

As flames spread through the upper vault structures, museum staff, Lavra monks and police sprang into action to try and save unique exhibits.

A bishop watches on as the burning Dormition Cathedral of the nearly 100-year-old monastery goes up in flames.  ( AP: Evgeniy Maloletka )

The Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra, a labyrinthine monastery and cave complex, holds some of Ukraine's most revered shrines and relics.

It is also where the bodies of monks ​rest within its vast ​underground warrens, including Saint Anthony who founded the monastery in 1050.

Father Makariy said the attack targeted not only the holy site, but Ukraine's identity.

"They not only want to destroy us physically, but they first and foremost want to erase our memory," he said.

Heritage under attack

Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy described the attack on the Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra as "one of Russia's most serious crimes against Christian culture to date".

Deputy Prime Minister for Humanitarian Affairs and Minister of Culture Tetyana Berezhna said the strike carried a symbolic weight.

"When the Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra comes under attack, this is not only about Ukraine. It is about heritage that belongs to all humanity," she wrote on social media.

She noted the site's enhanced protection under international cultural property conventions, saying the attack was "one of the most serious crimes against the world cultural heritage".

Russia denied striking the monastery and said it had been damaged by a US-made Patriot air defence missile.

Volodymyr Zelenskyy claims the strike on the cathedral was deliberate.  ( Reuters: Ukrainian Presidential Press Service )

Other significant landmarks were damaged in the strikes, including Kyiv's Mystetskyi Arsenal national art museum and a museum in Kharkiv.

As of June 10, 2026, UNESCO has independently verified damage to 536 cultural sites across Ukraine since the full-scale Russian invasion began in 2022.

A drone came straight through the roof of the Dormition Cathedra, according to Ukrainian officials.  ( Reuters: Thomas Peter )

The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs condemned the attacks on the sites, calling the Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra one of Ukraine's "most significant religious and cultural landmarks".

"Beyond the loss and destruction, these strikes on the sites of Ukraine's history and culture are seen by many as attacks on the country's history and spirit," it said in a statement.

"International humanitarian law provides special protection to cultural and religious sites, as attacks affecting them deprive communities of a shared heritage and a sense of belonging."

Bishop Avraamiy carries church inventory out of the burning Dormition Cathedral. ( AP: Evgeniy Maloletka )

Facing the extensive damage

Metropolitan Epiphanius, head of the Orthodox Church of Ukraine, posted photos to X showing the Dormition Cathedral up in flames as the city was coming under attack.

"The roof of one of the holiest places in the Christian world — the Dormition Cathedral of the Kyiv Pechersk Lavra — is burning," he said.

Rescue personnel work to put out a fire of in the roof of the Dormition Cathedral. ( AP: Evgeniy Maloletka )

Chiarra Dezzi Bardeschi, liaison officer to Ukraine for UNESCO, said the damage to the nearly 1,000-year-old monastery was extensive.

Local media reporting on the aftermath described the first thing visible from a distance was the blackened, fire-dama…