Vladimir Putin crossed a gigantic red line last night, when he struck and burned — not just a UNESCO World Heritage site under enhanced protection by the Second Protocol of the 1954 Hague Convention — but one of the oldest and most sacred monasteries in Eastern Christianity: the Dormition Cathedral of the Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra.

The Lavra was founded in 1051 A.D. Ironically, its graveyard contains the remains of Yuriy Dolgorukiy, the Grand Prince of Kyiv who founded Moscow itself nearly a century later (1147 A.D.).

Speaking about the attack, Tetiana Berezhna, Ukrainian Deputy Prime Minister for Humanitarian Policy and Culture, said:

“An attack on it is one of the gravest crimes against world cultural heritage. When the Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra comes under fire, this is not only about Ukraine. It is about heritage that belongs to all of humanity.” [Euromaidan Press, June 14, 2026.]

And Metropolitan Epiphanius, head of the Orthodox Church of Ukraine, wrote on X:

“As a result of Russian shelling happening right now, on the night of 15 June, the roof of one of the holiest sites in the Christian world — the Dormition Cathedral of the Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra — is on fire.

“We ask for your prayers for the salvation of this holy site from destruction.

“Yet another Russian crime against humanity, against history, against Christianity.

“What else must the Kremlin’s Antichrist do for the world to realize it must act decisively to end Russian terror against Ukraine and against the very principles of peace?

“Most Holy Mother of God, stop Herod!” [Id.]

While Ukraine carefully targets Russia’s military and its oil and gas refineries and storage facilities, the Kremlin continues to order attacks on civilian infrastructure: residential neighborhoods, hospitals, schools, public transportation . . . and now, it’s most holy and historic sites.

There is clearly no bottom to the depth of Putin’s depravity. As Metropolitan Epiphanius said, the madness of this modern-day “King Herod” must be stopped, once and for all.

Just sayin’ . . .

Brendochka
6/15/26