The President of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelensky, said that a monastery from the early 4th century was hit in an attack by Russian forces in eastern Ukraine on June 17.
The Russian Defense Ministry denied responsibility, accusing Ukrainian troops of setting fire to the All Saints Monastery during the retreat.
The monastery complex belongs to the Ukrainian Orthodox Church - Moscow Patriarchate and is located near Russian positions in eastern Donetsk, one of two regions Russia is trying to capture.
In the video that Zelenski published on the official Telegram and Facebook page, flames can be seen penetrating through the wooden walls of the church.
Reuters reported that it could not immediately verify the authenticity of the video.
"Today, Russian artillery again hit the wooden hermitage of the monastery of All Saints of the Sviatogorsk Lavra in the Donetsk region. It destroyed the monastery of All Saints, which was consecrated in 1912. It was first destroyed in Soviet times. It was later rebuilt, only to be burned by the Russian army." wrote the Ukrainian president.
Zelensky called for the exclusion of Russia from the United Nations agency for culture, science and education - UNESCO and added that there were no military objectives in that place.
"Every church that Russia burned in Ukraine, every school that was blown up, every destroyed monument proves that Russia has no place in UNESCO," Zelensky said.
The monastic settlement Svjatohirsk Lavra dates back to 1627. The Monastery of All Saints was built of wood in 2009 to replace the one that was destroyed in 1947.
The Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the Moscow Patriarchate, which remained loyal to Moscow after the 2019 split, said last month it would cut ties with Moscow over the invasion of Ukraine.
Bonus video:
