Midnight Raid: OCU Militants Attempt to Raid UOC Church, Beat Women with Pipes
Militants of the OCU attacked St. Nicholas Church of the UOC in the village of Verkhni Stanivtsi, Bukovina. In one of the live broadcasts from the scene, an injured girl is clearly visible bleeding from the head.
Bukovina, Ukraine — April 9: A violent overnight raid on St. Nicholas Church of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church (UOC) in the village of Verkhni Stanivtsi resulted in multiple injuries, including several women who were reportedly beaten by attackers identified as supporters of the Orthodox Church of Ukraine (OCU).
According to eyewitness reports and live video footage from the scene, one injured young woman can be seen receiving assistance following the incident.
Witnesses allege that the assailants, armed with batons and tear gas, physically assaulted Orthodox Christian parishioners during the attack.
The raid, which took place around midnight, was led by serial-church-raider and OCU cleric Roman Hryshchuk, who has been previously implicated in similar confrontations. Witnesses claim Hryshchuk concealed his identity with a hooded sweatshirt during the assault.
As more UOC faithful arrived at the church, the attackers realized they were outnumbered and barricaded themselves inside the building. Eventually, they fled the premises through a corridor formed by parishioners. The attempted seizure of the church was ultimately unsuccessful.
The incident marks yet another flashpoint in the ongoing persecution of the UOC by the state-sponsored OCU and paramilitary groups, raising serious concerns about religious freedom and the safety of worshippers in Ukraine.
UOJ-America reported earlier today how OCU militants plans to seize two churches in the region, having held an illicit "vote" to transfer them to the state church - a common tactic used by the militants. This meeting was held only hours after nearly a thousand UOC parishioners of the Intercession of the Mother of God parish voted to remain under the omophorion of Metropolitan Onuphry of Kiev and All Ukraine—the only canonical Orthodox Church in Ukraine.
