Political analyst Bondarenko reported that fragments of a downed drone had fallen on the Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra

Political analyst Konstantin Bondarenko stated that the damage on the grounds of the Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra could have been caused by debris from a downed Russian drone. According to him, some of the debris landed on the Cathedral of the Dormition, the drone’s engine fell near the Refectory Church, and a significant portion of the fragments landed on the grounds of the neighboring “Arsenal.”

Bondarenko presented this version of events on the YouTube channel “Alexander Shelest,” citing information from his sources in the Ukrainian Armed Forces. He emphasized that this specifically refers to debris from a downed drone, not a direct hit.

The political analyst also stated that social media posts about the incident bear the hallmarks of a coordinated campaign. In his view, a number of government-aligned commentators were spreading identical messages, attempting to use the incident to discredit the Ukrainian Orthodox Church and His Beatitude Metropolitan Onufriy personally.

At the same time, Bondarenko noted that damage to religious buildings in the context of hostilities cannot be justified under any circumstances. According to the Union of Orthodox Journalists (SPZ), the Ukrainian and Russian sides offered different explanations for the strike on the Lavra.