The mayor of Lviv, Andrei Sadovy, said that several missiles hit an aircraft repair station, but that work at the facility was halted before the strikes and there were no reports of casualties.
The Ukrainian armed forces say that preliminary information indicates that Russia launched six missiles towards Lviv on Friday morning. It says the missiles were most likely cruise missiles launched from warplanes over the Black Sea.
A statement by the armed forces on Facebook said that two of the six were intercepted by air defense systems.
The attack would add to fears that the Russian war could extend to the West. Here’s what you need to know about the importance of Lviv.
Location
About 43 miles (70 kilometers) from the Polish border, Lviv lies on NATO’s doorstep – so if attacks here intensify, they could have international repercussions.
refugees
Lviv has become a safe haven for Ukrainians fleeing other parts of the war-torn country.
It hosts more than 200,000 internally displaced people in a city of more than 700,000, according to the mayor. They flock to Lviv in search of relative safety, where many use it as a stopping point before making their way to the border.
logistics
The larger area is also an important arms supply route for the Ukrainian army and broader resistance efforts have thwarted Moscow’s plans for a blitzkrieg-like invasion.
Supply lanes in western Ukraine became more important as Russia throttled sea lanes and imposed a blockade on the south of the country. To the north lies Belarus, which hosts Russian forces and was one of the launching pads for the invasion.
culture and history
Lviv Historic Center is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and the National Museum houses the most complete collection of medieval sacred art and rare religious manuscripts in the country.
According to the city’s official website, Lviv was the site of Ukraine’s first mass movements in support of independence when communism collapsed.
On September 17, 1989, Lviv became the site of the largest demonstration in support of the revival of Ukraine’s independence, with 100,000 participants.
The Law on the Independence of the State of Ukraine was passed on August 24, 1991, and hundreds of people flocked to the streets of Lviv for the next day’s festivities.
“Being the indisputable capital of Ukrainian culture, spirituality and national identity, Lviv has always played a key role in the development of democracy and the struggle for Ukraine’s independence,” the site says.
At the beginning of the conflict, the Director-General of UNESCO, Audrey Azoulay, said: “We must protect Ukraine’s cultural heritage as evidence of the past, but also as a catalyst for peace and cohesion for the future, which the international community has seen as a duty to protect and preserve.”
temporary base
The city also became the temporary home of several media organizations and embassies, which had to relocate from the Ukrainian capital, Kyiv.
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