Russia damaged and destroyed 479 Ukrainian libraries

As a result of Russian military aggression in Ukraine, 1271 cultural infrastructure facilities, including 479 libraries, have been damaged. This was reported by the Ministry of Culture and Information Policy.

As of January 25, 2023, 473 cultural infrastructure facilities, excluding cultural heritage sites, have been destroyed.

According to the MCIP, over the past month, the total number of cultural infrastructure facilities affected by Russian aggression has increased by 82 units, most of which (44 units) are in the de-occupied territories of Kherson region, and another third are in the active combat zones of Donetsk region.

Clubs, libraries, museums, theaters, philharmonic halls, art education institutions and cultural heritage sites in 198 territorial communities were damaged and destroyed. The worst figures were recorded in Donetsk, Mykolaiv, Sumy, Luhansk, Kharkiv and Chernihiv regions.

In total, the following were affected:

• clubs – 603 units.
• libraries – 479 units
• museums and galleries – 69 units
• theaters and philharmonic halls – 22 units
• art education institutions – 98 units.

The MCIP also notes that almost the entire territory of Luhansk and significant parts of Kherson, Zaporizhzhia and Donetsk regions are still under temporary occupation, which makes it impossible to calculate the exact number of cultural infrastructure objects damaged during the hostilities.

Earlier, a list of completely destroyed cultural monuments was published.

Read also: UNESCO updated the list of cultural sites damaged in Ukraine during the war

Photo: Ukrainska Pravda. Zhyttia