Russian troops shelled the territory of a church in Kherson

Russian military personnel shelled the territory of the Greek-Sophian Church in Kherson.

A photo of the destroyed church was published by the executive director of the Kherson League of Social Workers, Igor Tsurkan.

The photo shows broken windows and burnt walls and a destroyed roof of a building located on the territory of the church.

According to the Oles Honchar Kherson Regional Scientific Library, the Greek-Sophia Church is one of the oldest religious buildings in Kherson.

“At the end of the 18th century, the Greeks living in Crimea asked Catherine II to accept them as their citizens. They were allowed to move to the modern territory of Ukraine. Some of the Greeks who settled in Kherson took an active part in the construction and improvement of the city. The Merchants’ Suburb, the central district of the city, was also called Greek, and Greek merchants lived there. In 1780, the Greek-Sophia Church was built and consecrated. The church was originally wooden, but over time it was rebuilt into a stone one,” the library’s material says.

It is also noted that the church has an iconostasis made of ebony, handmade by Greek craftsmen.