“militants who seize churches may be doing so on orders from Russian special services

“following such actions, Russian propagandists use footage of the raids as evidence of "defending Orthodoxy" from Ukraine

“What is happening recalls the processes surrounding the Ukrainian Orthodox Church

“new attempts to seize the UOC’s Ascension Church in Kyiv’s Demiivka district

“Of particular concern to believing citizens of Ukraine is the fact that in recent years, under the pretext of ‘preserving cultural heritage,’ religious communities of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church have been deprived en masse of the right to pray in their historic churches

“the believers reported actions by OCU representatives and certain political figures that violate the right to freedom of religion guaranteed by the Constitution of Ukraine and infringe upon the rights of parishioners of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church