As the third anniversary of Russia’s war in Ukraine approaches, the United Nations’ cultural arm UNESCO has granted “temporarily enhanced protection” to two Ukrainian heritage sites – the Odessa Literary Museum and the Babin Yar National Historical Monument.
One of the cultural properties is the Babin Yar National Historical Memorial Reserve in Kiviv, commemorating the more than 33,000 Jews, as well as Roma and Soviet prisoners, who were murdered by the Nazis in a two-day pogrom in 1941. In March 2022, a Russian projectile struck near the site, killing five people. The Memorial to the Victims of the Holocaust was not hit directly, but a nearby building where the center plans to build a new museum was damaged.
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“Cultural property under the enhanced protection of UNESCO enjoys the highest level of immunity from attack and use for military purposes. Failure to comply with these provisions will constitute a ‘serious breach’ of Protocol II to the 1999 Hague Convention and may result in Prosecution,” UNESCO said in a statement.
In February this year, UNESCO According to reports, since the outbreak of the war in February 2022, 341 cultural sites have been damaged across Ukraine, including 26 religious buildings, 150 buildings of important historical or artistic significance, and 31 museums. The following year, UNESCO Director-General Audrey Azoulay committed more than $10 million to rehabilitation efforts.
“In times of war, international solidarity is crucial to protect threatened cultural heritage,” Azoulay said in a statement. “This decision will further strengthen the security of these two Ukrainian cultural sites, including a major Holocaust Memorial Site.”
