Russian strike burns 800,000 books to ash, says Ukrainian publisher

 A Ukrainian publishing house, whose portfolio includes books by George Orwell and Barack Obama, said Thursday it had lost around 800,000 books in the deadly Russian strike on Kyiv. 

The overnight attack, which killed at least 21 people and left dozens wounded, was one of the biggest aerial barrages launched by Russia during its invasion of Ukraine, now in its fifth year. 

Ukraine has frequently blamed Moscow for targeting its cultural sites, including museums, galleries, film studios and Kyiv's landmark, Unesco-listed 11th-century monastery in its daily attacks. 

"As a result of Russia's nighttime attack, the central warehouse of our logistics partner ... where our books were stored was destroyed," BookChef Publishing, one of the largest publishers in Ukraine, said on Telegram. 

"Most of the print run – approximately 800,000 books – has been lost," the publisher said. 

It posted pictures of the destroyed building, with smouldering piles of rubble around and firefighters working at the scene. 

The company said no one from its staff was harmed in the attack. 

BookChef Publishing's portfolio includes over 700 titles, including bestsellers by Yuval Noah Harari, Michelle and Barack Obama, Matthew McConaughey, Will Smith, George Orwell and Charles Bukowski. 

Agence France-Presse