Using before-and-after satellite images, the UN has documented the damage or complete destruction of 207 cultural sites in war-torn Ukraine.

The data is being collected on a specially created online platform, which will initially only be accessible to experts but will soon open up to the public, said Krista Pikkat of UNESCO in Geneva on Wednesday.

She said the seven UNESCO World Heritage sites in Ukraine had been spared from damage due to Russia’s full-scale invasion eight months ago.

She said other locations, like the Mariupol drama theatre, have not met the same fate.

Hundreds of civilians sought refuge there shortly after the war began in March.

She added that on March 16, Russian bombs destroyed much of the building; the images evaluated by UNESCO were from March 9 and May 12.

Out of the 207 locations, 88 were religious sites, 15 museums, 76 buildings of historical or artistic interest, 18 monuments, and 10 were libraries.

However, UNESCO is working with the Geneva-based United Nations Satellite Centre (UNOSAT) for photo evaluations.

When UNESCO receives information about the damage, UNOSAT buys satellite images from commercial vendors taken as close as possible before and after the attack.

According to UNOSAT, such images cost between €250 ($251) and more than €1,000, depending on how they were obtained.

Meanwhile, experts have processed the satellite images to show the exact destruction.

Ms Pikkat said the images are used to document the timing of the destruction and the extent, among other things, to make plans for reconstruction.

(dpa/NAN)