As a result of Russian aggression, 1179 cultural heritage sites, including architectural, historical, cultural, and artistic monuments, have been damaged or destroyed in Ukraine. According to the Ministry of Culture and Information Policy, these losses are the result of active combat operations as well as repeated shelling and strikes on already damaged sites.
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What happened in October 2024?
In October 2024, the Ministry of Culture and Information Policy of Ukraine reported the damage of 10 new cultural heritage sites. Since the beginning of the full-scale invasion, 1179 cultural sites have been affected. Of these, 120 are of national significance, 990 are of local significance, and 69 are newly discovered objects.
Repeated strikes and new damages
The escalation of the situation led to repeated strikes on already damaged heritage sites. These additional hits occurred in the Zaporizhzhia, Kharkiv, Kherson, and Dnipropetrovsk regions. In addition, new damage to cultural sites was reported in the Donetsk, Kharkiv, Kherson, and Zaporizhzhia regions in October.
Geographic distribution of damaged heritage sites
Cultural heritage sites have been damaged in 18 regions of Ukraine and Kyiv. The most significant damage occurred in the following regions:
- Kharkiv region — 316 damaged sites
- Donetsk region — 163 sites
- Kherson region — 157 sites
- Odesa region — 116 sites
- Kyiv region and Kyiv city — 81 sites
- Chernihiv region — 65 sites
- Lviv region — 60 sites
- Zaporizhzhia region — 53 sites
- Mykolaiv and Dnipropetrovsk regions — 41 sites each
- Luhansk region — 31 sites
- Sumy region — 29 sites
- Khmelnytskyi region — 10 sites
- Poltava region — 6 sites
- Vinnytsia and Zhytomyr regions — 4 sites each
- Kirovohrad and Cherkasy regions — 1 site each
These figures reflect the extensive destruction that has affected Ukraine’s cultural heritage during the ongoing war.
The importance of preserving cultural heritage
Protecting cultural heritage is a vital component of national identity and historical memory for Ukraine. The destruction of these sites is not just a physical loss but also a blow to the cultural and spiritual wealth of the people. The Ministry of Culture and Information Policy continues to document the damage and is taking measures to preserve and restore cultural sites after the war ends.
For more detailed information and data on the damaged heritage sites, visit the official website of the Ministry of Culture and Information Policy of Ukraine: Ministry of Culture and Information Policy of Ukraine.
