Ukraine’s Foreign Minister Andriy Sybiga announced that experts from UNESCO are expected to arrive in the country soon to assess damage inflicted by Russian forces on the historic center of Lviv. This follows a recent airstrike that targeted significant cultural sites.
Sybiga emphasized that the attack was not merely on buildings but represented a broader assault on UNESCO World Heritage, directly challenging the organization and those worldwide who value cultural heritage. He stated that Kyiv will demand a strong response from UNESCO regarding this incident.
As of now, UNESCO has not publicly confirmed the visit of its experts to Ukraine. Earlier on March 24, a Russian military drone struck Lviv, resulting in at least 22 individuals being hospitalized, with local authorities reporting an increase in casualties.
Maxim Kozytsky, head of the Lviv Regional State Administration, noted that the attack caused damage to the Bernardine Monastery, a national architectural landmark. Russian military operations have consistently targeted Ukrainian cities and civilian infrastructure using various types of weaponry, including drones and missiles.
Ukrainian authorities and international organizations categorize these strikes as war crimes, asserting that they are deliberate in nature. Attacks on essential services and healthcare facilities aimed at depriving civilians of electricity, heating, water supply, communication, and medical assistance are viewed as indicators of genocidal actions.
Legal experts and human rights advocates argue that Russia’s actions during the ongoing conflict constitute various forms of crimes that could fall under the definition of genocide. This includes public declarations by Russian officials denying the existence of Ukrainians as an ethnic group and calls for their destruction.
The 1948 United Nations Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide obligates its 149 member states to prevent and punish acts of genocide both in wartime and peacetime. The Convention defines genocide as actions aimed at the complete or partial destruction of a national, ethnic, racial, or religious group.
Indicators of genocide include the killing of group members, infliction of serious bodily harm, and the deliberate creation of living conditions intended to destroy the group. The Russian government, however, denies that its military conducts targeted strikes against civilian infrastructure, resulting in civilian casualties and damage to essential services.
Ukraine's Foreign Minister has confirmed that UNESCO experts will assess the damage caused by a recent Russian airstrike on Lviv's historic center. The attack has raised concerns about the preservation of cultural heritage and has been classified as a potential war crime by Ukrainian authorities.