Dumenko: I learned about the Lavra strike from a monk filming nearby

Serhiy Dumenko. Photo: a screenshot from Channel 24

The head of the OCU Serhiy Dumenko shared in an interview with Channel 24 the circumstances under which he learned of the strike on the Dormition Cathedral of the Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra.

Responding to a journalist's question, he stated that he received the information almost immediately from a monk of the Theodosius Monastery.

"I found out immediately, practically within a few minutes after it happened. The Theodosius Monastery is located near us, and one of the monks happened to be in the bell tower and was filming at that time. And when I found out, I didn't even believe at first that it had actually happened, because it is terrible," Dumenko stated.

Earlier, the authorities stated that the Shahed drone strike on the Dormition Cathedral occurred at 1:30 a.m. Dumenko did not explain what the monk was doing on the bell tower at night or what exactly he was filming.

As the UOJ previously reported, on April 3, 2026, the OCU Synod relocated the monks of the Theodosius Monastery to the Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra and established a women’s monastery at the former monastery site.

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