Ukraine has come under a massive Russian missile and drone attack with waves of explosions echoing through the capital, Kyiv, in the early hours of Monday as air raids killed at least nine people across the country.
Among targets hit in the sustained wave of strikes were the city’s historic Dormition Cathedral within the Kyiv Pechersk Lavra, one of Ukraine’s most significant religious sites, as well as residential buildings across the city.
Footage from the Perchersk Lavra, a Unesco world heritage site, showed towering flames licking up towards its domes. Six people were reported injured.
“[T]he roof of one of the holiest places in the Christian world – the Dormition Cathedral of the Kyiv Pechersk Lavra – is burning,” Metropoliton Epiphanius, head of the Orthodox Church of Ukraine, wrote on X.
Yulia Svyrydenko, the prime minister, posted a picture of the monastery building in flames and wrote: “A brutal assault on our people and our heritage. This is the true face of Russia’s Orthodox values.
“We ask for prayers for the salvation of the shrine from destruction. Another Russian crime against humanity, against history, against Christianity.”
Damage was reported at 16 locations across the capital amid the sound of interceptor launches and explosions that shook windows in the city centre.
“New launches targeting the capital keep being recorded,” said Tymur Tkachenko, head of Kyiv’s military administration, urging people to remain in shelters.
Four people were killed and 23 injured in Kyiv, Tkachenko said. Outside the capital, at least five people were killed in the city of Kharkiv in what appeared to be a double tap strike targeting emergency responders.
Attacks across Ukraine came after the Russian president, Vladimir Putin, had warned that Moscow would target Ukraine with “systemic” strikes, and amid evidence of mounting battlefield setbacks for Russia.
Smoke rises from a fire during the Russian drone and missile attack on Kyiv. Photograph: Chris McGrath/Getty Images The strikes follow a period of relative quiet in Kyiv in recent days as Moscow prepared its drone and missile forces for the latest in a recent series of massive air attacks.
Poland, an EU and Nato member, scrambled fighter jets and put ground-based air defence systems and radar reconnaissance on a state of readiness, the Polish armed forces said on Monday morning.
The strikes came after the Ukrainian president, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, said on Sunday that he had spoken to Donald Trump ahead of a G7 meeting in France this week and discussed efforts to achieve an end to the more than four-year war.
Trump also told Putin on Sunday that ending the conflict in Ukraine was vital and he was ready to help, the Kremlin said.
Progress towards a peace agreement in Ukraine has been slow, with US officials and mediators concentrating on the conflict in the Middle East. US and Iranian officials said on Sunday they had agreed on a peace framework to end their war, with the pact expected to be officially signed on Friday in Switzerland.
Read the full article at The Guardian (World) →📄Source document: Metropoliton Epiphanius
3 reports
Sky News (World)IndependentCenter3 days agoSoldiers are conducting searches for militants near the main airport and military airbase in Niger's capital, Niamey, following reports of explosions and sustained gunfire.
Bias read (Center): The article provides a brief report on an incident involving security forces and does not exhibit any clear ideological framing or bias. It focuses on the event itself without emphasizing particular political perspectives.
BBC News (World)State / PublicCenter3 days agoResidents of Niger's capital, Niamey, reported hearing gunfire and explosions at the Diori Hamani International Airport on Thursday morning. The attacks lasted approximately two hours before being repelled by the military, according to witnesses. No group has claimed responsibility for the incident, though an affiliate of the Islamic State group previously claimed responsibility for a similar attack in January. In response to that earlier attack, Niger's military government leader thanked Russia for assistance and accused French, Beninese, and Ivorian leaders of supporting the attackers. The当局
Bias read (Center): The article presents factual reports from residents and witnesses without overtly biased language or selective sourcing. It does not take a clear stance on the political claims made by Niger's military government leader.
The Guardian (World)IndependentCenter6 days agoUkraine experienced a large-scale Russian missile and drone attack during the early hours of Monday, resulting in at least nine deaths and damage to several locations in Kyiv, including the historic Dormition Cathedral within the Kyiv Pechersk Lavra, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The cathedral caught fire, with six people injured. Ukrainian officials condemned the attack as an assault on cultural and religious heritage.
Bias read (Center): The article reports on a military attack and its consequences without overtly favoring any side. It includes direct quotes from Ukrainian officials expressing condemnation but does not present counterpoints or frame the event with biased language.
Official sources cited
- organisation Metropoliton Epiphanius
- organisation Yulia Svyrydenko
United Kingdom