At least 11 people have been killed in a wave of Russian strikes on Ukraine that set a major religious landmark in Kyiv on fire, President Volodymyr Zelensky says.
Four people were killed in attacks on the Ukrainian capital, while five rescue workers died trying to put out a fire caused by a strike on the north-eastern city of Kharkiv, officials said.
The 11th Century Dormition Cathedral was significantly damaged in what Zelensky called “one of the biggest Russian crimes against Christian culture today”. Russia denied hitting the site.
Meanwhile, a Ukrainian drone attack in the Russian city of Tula killed three people and wounded three others, including a one-year-old, local officials said.
Drone and missile strikes set fire to buildings and cars and left more than 140,000 people in Kyiv without electricity, its Mayor Vitali Klitschko said.
Most of Ukraine was under air raid warnings on Monday morning.
The Kyiv strikes, which targeted several residential buildings, left at least 23 people wounded. Zelensky said a total of 53 people had been injured across Ukraine.
The Dormition Cathedral is part of the Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra, an architectural ensemble of monastic buildings declared a Unesco World Heritage Site.
A gaping hole could be seen on one side of the church, with flames visible from the partially destroyed roof.
Zelensky said Russia launched 70 missiles and 611 drones in the overnight attack, and that the fire had since been extinguished.
French President Emmanuel Macron joined the Ukrainian leader in condemning the strike.
“Nothing justifies this attack on our universal heritage,” he said on X.
EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas called the attacks on the cathedral and Ukrainian civilians “war crimes”.
The strikes come ahead of a G7 meeting of world leaders this week in France, where the war in Ukraine is on the agenda.
Zelensky said the meeting’s response should be “decisive and meaningful: more pressure on the aggressor, more assistance to Ukraine with air defense, primarily with anti-ballistic missiles”.
The Ukrainian leader earlier said he had spoken to US President Donald Trump about efforts to end the long-running conflict.
Russia said a US-manufactured Patriot air defence missile had hit the cathedral, possibly after misfiring. It did not provide evidence to support its claim.
Russia’s military said its “massive strike” had targeted Ukrainian military sites.
This is not the first time the cathedral has been struck during Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, which began in 2022.
In January, Russian attacks damaged several buildings in the Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra complex, Ukraine’s Ministry of Culture said at the time.
During World War Two, it was almost entirely destroyed, with the exception of its south-eastern tower, Unesco says on its website.
The UN agency condemned the strike on “one of Ukraine’s most significant spiritual and cultural landmarks”.
“Damage to such institutions deprives communiteies of access to culture, education and shared spaces that are essential for recovery and social cohesion,” it said in a statement.
