Sawt Falasteen - Deadly Russian strikes kill 11, set landmark Kyiv monastery ablaze

AFP journalists across Kyiv witnessed residents running through the streets seeking shelter throughout the night as projectiles were intercepted in the sky and glowing debris fell across the city.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Monday called for more pressure on Moscow from G7 leaders, gathering at a summit in France set to be dominated by the US-Iranian deal to end the Middle East war.

He also said he told US President Donald Trump he was willing to meet Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin in the United States, calling it an offer Putin would find "harder to refuse".

The violence killed five people and wounded 34 in Kyiv as a fire broke out on the grounds of the Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra UNESCO world heritage site, setting ablaze the roof of its Dormition Cathedral.

"This is one of Russia's most serious crimes against Christian culture to date," Zelensky said on social media.

Founded in the 11th century, the site holds huge significance for Orthodox believers in both Ukraine and Russia.

Russia's military said it had carried out a "massive strike" on military sites in Kyiv, as well as the Kharkiv and Dnipro regions, but denied targeting the Lavra, saying it was hit by an outdated US Patriot air defence missile.

After he visited the site, Zelensky said two Russian drones "deliberately" targeted Kyiv's monastery quarter.

Moscow fired 70 missiles and 611 drones, mainly targeting the capital, Ukraine's air force said, adding that it had downed 50 of the missiles and 582 drones.

In the morning Kyiv sun, an AFP reporter saw rescuers carefully cleaning up rubble at the monastery, as the church bells rang out the tune of the Ukrainian anthem.

The Ukrainian security service said it was putting the debris from one of the drones on display.

- 'Kremlin antichrist' -

Makariy, a monk who lives in the monastery, said he "jumped" from his bed after having been woken by a strong "roar" at five in the morning.

After stepping out of his room, he saw the complex engulfed in "fire and smoke" and took cover in a shelter.

Emergency service worker Ivan told AFP that "everything is fine inside" the Dormition Cathedral and that its roof took most of the damage.

The Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra, a monastery with emblematic golden domes, is venerated by both the Russian and Ukrainian wings of the Orthodox Church as one of their most important spiritual centres.

Its sprawling cave system holds the relics of dozens of saints revered by both Churches.

The Dormition Cathedral, set alight in the overnight attacks, was almost completely destroyed during World War II and rebuilt only in the 1990s.

The Russian Orthodox Church administered the site via its Ukrainian branch for centuries.

In 2022-2023, the monks serving in the Ukrainian branch of the Moscow church were evicted from the monastery, accused of having ties to Russia.

The United Nations' cultural agency UNESCO condemned the air raid and Kyiv's Metropolitan Epiphanius, who heads the Ukrainian Orthodox Church, also denounced the attack.

"What more must the Kremlin antichrist do for the world to realise that decisive action must be taken to stop Russian terror against Ukraine and against the very principles of peace?" he said.

- 'Additional pressure needed' -

In total, 11 people were killed, including four in Kyiv and five -- rescue workers and a civil servant -- in the northeastern city of Kharkiv.

In Russia, a Ukrainian drone strike also killed three people and wounded three others in the city of Tula, around 200 kilometres (125 miles) south of Moscow, the regional governor Dmitry Milyaev said on Monday.

Zelensky said he was waiting to see what came of his proposal to meet Putin in the US, warning that if Russia again refuses talks, "additional pressure will be needed".

Putin has repeatedly rejected calls for a face-to-face meeting, including a fresh invitation from Zelensky to meet during the G7 summit.

Russia's February 2022 invasion of Ukraine has turned into Europe's worst conflict since World War II, with thousands of civilians and hundreds of thousands of troops killed.

V.AbuAwwad--SF-PST