Leaders in Ukraine claim Russia has bombed a church in a horrifying Easter attack.

This weekend marked the Orthodox Easter, an occasion that will have seen many of Ukraine's churches filled with congregants. Despite it being one of the biggest weekends in the Orthodox calendar, it's believed the church was empty and no one was harmed.

In Moscow, Russian leader Vladimir Putin attended Easter mass at Christ The Saviour Cathedral, led by Patriarch Kirill, surrounded by security servicemen.

Photos show him holding a red candle, stern-faced. In his sermon, the Patriarch justified the ongoing war in Ukraine, saying forces were fighting to reclaim "historic Russian territory."

Photographs of the village of Komyshuvakha, Zaporizhzhia region, show a black, scorched hole in the ground, surrounded by rubble, believed to have once been a place of Christian worship.

Ukrainian MP Oleksiy Goncharenko posted: "On Easter night, the Russians destroyed a church near Zaporizhzhia. And they call Ukrainians Nazis and Satanists."

It is the second Orthodox Easter since the war began in February 2022.

Last year, several news outlets reported hopes of a ceasefire between the sparring nations in order to allow Christians to celebrate the resurrection of Christ.