A UNESCO World Heritage monastery that's stood for nearly a thousand years is burning.
Russian missiles and drones hit the Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra monastery in the early hours of Monday, setting it ablaze in what authorities say is the heaviest attack on the Ukrainian capital in two weeks. Four people were killed in Kyiv alone.
The monastery, founded in 1051 and known as the Monastery of the Caves, is a sprawling complex of churches, some connected by a 600-metre labyrinth of underground caves. It's one of Ukraine's most sacred Orthodox sites.
"A brutal assault on our people and our heritage. This is the true face of Russia's Orthodox values," Ukrainian Prime Minister Yulia Svyrydenko posted on X.
Across the country, nine people died. In Kharkiv, five emergency rescuers were killed by a second Russian strike as they fought a fire from an earlier attack. Three people, including a child, were wounded in Sumy.
Ukraine's military said Russia launched 70 missiles and 611 drones overnight. Air defence shot down 50 missiles and 582 drones, but the rest got through.
The strikes hit several high-rise apartment buildings and damaged power lines, leaving about 140,000 residents in Kyiv without electricity. Residents took shelter underground.
"What more must the Kremlin Antichrist do for the world to realise that decisive action must be taken?" Metropolitan Epifaniy, head of the Orthodox Church of Ukraine, wrote on X.
Poland, a NATO member, scrambled fighter jets in case of an airspace violation but later stood down.
Ukraine's Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha said Kyiv would "urgently initiate" procedures within UNESCO and other international bodies to get a response to the attack on the monastery.
Russia and Ukraine both deny deliberately targeting civilians. Reuters couldn't independently verify the reports.
The attack comes as diplomatic efforts to end the war remain stalled. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky spoke with US President Donald Trump on Sunday about peace efforts, ahead of a G7 meeting in France this week.
Zelensky had proposed direct talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin, backed by Britain, Germany and France. Putin rejected the offer.
The Kremlin said Trump told Putin that ending the conflict was vital and he was ready to help. But US officials have been focused on the Middle East, where Washington and Tehran agreed on a peace framework to end their war, expected to be signed Friday.
Meanwhile, Ukraine continues to strike Russian industrial and energy targets to cut Moscow's war revenue. On Monday, three people were killed in a drone attack on Tula, an industrial city south of Moscow. A one-year-old child was among the injured.
Ukraine also hit two bridges connecting Russia-occupied Crimea to the mainland, aiming to cut off the peninsula from supplies. Crimea, annexed by Russia in 2014, is already facing a fuel crisis.