In Pictures

Ukraine marks its third Easter at war

Russia has launched a barrage of drones on eastern Ukraine and claimed its troops took control of a village.

Servicemen of the 24th brigade of Ukrainian Army attend the Easter service in an undisclosed location in the Donetsk region. [Genya Savilov/AFP]

By News Agencies

Ukraine has been hit by yet another barrage as it marked its third Easter at war with Russia’s invading forces.

As Ukraine celebrated Orthodox Easter on Sunday, Russia launched a barrage of drones concentrated on the east. The attack wounded more than a dozen people, while Moscow claimed its troops took control of a strategic village on the front line.

Sunday marked the third Easter since Russia launched its invasion of Ukraine on February 24, 2022.

Ukraine’s air force said it shot down 23 of the 24 Shahed drones Russia launched overnight. However, six people, including a child, were wounded in a strike in the Kharkiv region, regional Governor Oleh Syniehubov said.

Fourteen more were wounded in an air strike on Sunday afternoon on Kharkiv, the regional prosecutor’s office said. Syniehubov said the city was attacked by an aerial bomb.

Fires broke out when debris from drones that were shot down fell on buildings in the neighbouring Dnipropetrovsk region. No casualties were reported.

The Russian Ministry of Defence announced that its troops had taken control of the village of Ocheretyne, which has been in the crosshairs of Russian forces in the Donetsk region.

Officials in Kyiv urged residents to follow Orthodox Easter services online due to safety concerns. Serhiy Popko, head of the Kyiv city administration, warned that “even on such bright days of celebration, we can expect evil deeds from the aggressor”.

In his Easter address, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy called on Ukrainians to be “united in one common prayer”.

In a video filmed in front of Kyiv’s Saint Sophia Cathedral, Zelenskyy – wearing a traditional Vyshyvanka embroidered shirt – said that God “has a chevron with the Ukrainian flag on his shoulder”.

With “such an ally”, Zelenskyy said, “life will definitely win over death”.

A majority of Ukrainians identify as Orthodox Christians, although the conflict has helped divide the church.

Many belong to the independent Orthodox Church of Ukraine. The rival Ukrainian Orthodox Church was loyal to the patriarch in Moscow until splitting from Russia after the 2022 invasion and is viewed with suspicion by many.

Eastern Orthodox Christians usually celebrate Easter later than Catholic and Protestant Christians, because they use a different method of calculating the date for the holy day that marks Christ’s resurrection.

KHERSON REGION, UKRAINE - MAY 5: A soldier of the 126th Territorial Defense Brigade, who is fighting on the southern front of Ukraine, prepares to send out Easter cake delivered by FPV drone for soldiers who hold positions on the left bank of the Dnipro River — A soldier of the 126th Territorial Defense Brigade, fighting on the southern front of Ukraine, prepares to send out Easter cake delivered by FPV drone for soldiers who hold positions on the left bank of the Dnipro River. [Kostiantyn Liberov/Libkos/Getty Images]

Ukrainian officials inspect the area after the explosion of a Russian guided bomb in the area of apartment buildings in the center of Kharkiv — Ukrainian officials inspect a building after the explosion of a Russian guided bomb near apartment buildings in the center of Kharkiv. [Anadolu via Getty Images]

Medics evacuate an injured man from the scene of a Russian bomb attack in Kharkiv. [Yakiv Liashenko/EPA]

Orthodox devotees sit in a car with baskets of traditional Easter delights after being blessed by a Ukrainian priest on Orthodox Easter in the village of Krasne, Chernigiv region — Orthodox devotees sit in a car with baskets of traditional Easter delights after being blessed by a Ukrainian priest on Orthodox Easter in the village of Krasne, Chernihiv region. [Roman Pilipey/AFP]

Ukrainian women pray during overnight Easter service at the Church of the Nativity of the Theotokos in Kryvorivnia — Women pray during overnight Easter service at the Church of the Nativity of the Theotokos in Kryvorivnia, Carpathian mountains region. [Paula Bronstein/Getty Images]

A believer visits the graves of her loved ones to pay homage to them on the day of Easter, — A believer visits the graves of her loved ones to pay homage to them on the day of Easter in the township of Pustomyty. [Gleb Garanich/Reuters]

People in traditional Ukrainian clothes celebrate Easter, perform folk dances and revive national traditions at the Museum of Folk Architecture and Life in Lviv. [Olena Znak/Anadolu via Getty Images]

A woman holds his son while other believers pray during an Easter service in a church at a compound of the Kyiv Pechersk Lavra monastery, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in Kyiv, — Believers pray during an Easter service in a church at a compound of the Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra, a monastery in Kyiv. [Alina Smutko/Reuters]