The UN’s cultural agency has confirmed that at least 53 historical sites, religious buildings and museums have sustained damage during Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

“This is the latest list, but it is not exhaustive, as our experts are continuing to verify a number of reports” filed by Ukrainian authorities, a Unesco spokesperson told AFP as the body published a list of the 53 damaged sites in the north and east of the country.

The spokesperson said Unesco used satellite images and witness reports from the scene to verify the information provided by the Ukrainian authorities. The sites Unesco said have been damaged include over a dozen in the eastern Kharkiv region, which has come under intense Russian fire, ranging from churches to more modern heritage sites.

People visiting the National Museum of the History of Ukraine earlier this month before the launch of the Russian invasion.
‘Cultural catastrophe’: Ukrainians fear for art and monuments amid onslaught
Read more
Five are in the capital, Kyiv, while another five are in the Chernihiv region of northern Ukraine, which is home to a cluster of historic sites.

Unesco said that, overall, 29 religious sites, 16 historic buildings, four museums and four monuments were confirmed to have been damaged. The list does not include information from the besieged city of Mariupol or the city of Kherson, which has been captured by Russia.

None of those confirmed damaged are on the list of Unesco world heritage sites in Ukraine, such as the Saint-Sophia Cathedral or the monastic buildings of the Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra.

However, the historic centre of Chernihiv is on the Tentative List, meaning that Ukraine wants it considered for world heritage status. This week Chernihiv’s mayor accused Russian forces of intensifying their bombardment of the besieged city, despite claims the Kremlin would draw back out of respect for peace talks that are under way.

In a letter sent on 17 March, a copy of which was obtained by AFP, Unesco’s director general, Audrey Azoulay, reminded the Russian foreign minister, Sergei Lavrov, of Russia’s obligations to protect cultural heritage during conflict under an international convention.

“Any violation of these norms will see the perpetrators brought to international responsibility,” she said, adding that Unesco would be watching closely the state of cultural heritage in Ukraine.

Ukraine’s culture ministry on Friday weighed in on the same subject, saying it had recorded 135 instances of Russian troops committing crimes against Ukraine’s cultural heritage since the war started, the Interfax-Ukraine news agency reported.

The agency said the crimes included destroying a local history museum in the Kyiv region, bombing a theatre in Mariupol, a southern port city besieged by Moscow for nearly a month, and damaging a Holocaust memorial in Kharkiv in eastern Ukraine.
http://theendtimeradio.com