The Commissioner for Human Rights of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine, Dmytro Lubinets, reported that on the night of January 24, Russia struck the Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra for the first time since World War II.
According to him, the attack damaged the entrance to the Dalnye Pechery complex, as well as the Annunciation Church. This is a National Reserve that is included in the UNESCO World Heritage List and has survived the changes of empires and the devastating wars of the 20th century over the centuries.
Lubinets emphasized that the attack on the monastery cannot be considered an accident.
" This is not an accident. This is a choice ," he declared.
At the same time, the Ombudsman emphasized that the attack on the Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra is just one of the episodes of the large-scale destruction of religious and cultural sites in Ukraine. During the full-scale armed aggression of the Russian Federation in Ukraine, more than 700 religious structures were damaged, of which 53 were completely destroyed.
According to Lubinets, such actions are a systematic attack on the cultural, historical and spiritual heritage of the Ukrainian people. The destruction of shrines that are under international protection is a gross violation of international humanitarian law, in particular the 1954 Hague Convention for the Protection of Cultural Property in the Event of Armed Conflict.
In addition, the Ombudsman noted that attacks on religious sites are an infringement on basic human rights - freedom of religion, historical memory, and identity.
" Protecting cultural heritage is not a secondary issue of war. It is a matter of responsibility. After all, cultural heritage is not about the past. It is about our identity. What we are fighting for today ," emphasized Dmytro Lubinets.
