At least 17 people were killed and over 200 wounded on Tuesday as Russian air strikes hit Ukraine’s Dnipropetrovsk region, with one of the bombs striking a church, according to Ukrainian officials.
Twelve people remain in a serious condition, and 18 children were hurt.
The rare daylight assault damaged hospitals, schools, a train, and civilian infrastructure. Images from the scene showed shattered pews and icons inside the Dnipro Theological Seminary of the Orthodox Church of Ukraine, which was holding a service at the time.
Speaking to Reuters, the church's priest Serhii Narolsky said the attack happened "in a split second".
"You open your eyes, and there are no windows or doors anywhere. Everything is in a half-destroyed state, but thank God, everyone who was on the grounds of the church and our complex remained unharmed."
The Primate of the Orthodox Church of Ukraine, Metropolitan Epifaniy, shared on social media that educational facilities, student dormitories, and homes of lecturers have been damaged as a result.
He continued: "Over the years of the war, more than six hundred churches and other places of worship have been destroyed or significantly damaged due to Russian attacks. The majority of them belonged to the jurisdiction of the Moscow Patriarchate. And this state-sponsored Russian terrorism against civilians, against civilian infrastructure, including religious sites, continues.
"Everyone who still believes that the Kremlin’s tyranny is supposedly only defending Christian values, seeking good for Europe and the world, or desiring peace—look into the eyes of the families waiting by the ruins of buildings, hoping their loved ones will be rescued from the rubble! Look at the ruins of hospitals and schools, at the destroyed churches.
"The deeds of the Russian empire of evil speak louder than a thousand words. It is the embodiment of darkness, deception, and hatred for humanity, which has no place in the civilised world! Therefore, all those who truly want peace must stop the evil of the “Russian world” as soon as possible," he concluded.
President Volodymyr Zelensky, attending a NATO summit in the Netherlands, condemned the attack as a "complete disregard for life," noting the timing coincided with critical meetings on Ukraine's defence.
The strikes also hit the Sumy region, killing five more people, including a five-year-old child. Kyiv accused Moscow of deliberately escalating violence to derail peace efforts.