On its Facebook page, the Khmelnitsky diocese of the UOC reported that on April 10, 2023, a raider seizure of the St. George Church of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church and the Spiritual Center located near the temple took place in Khmelnitsky.

“At about 4 p.m., a group of unknown persons, dressed mainly in sportswear, entered the territory of St. George’s Church. Unable to cope with the central door of the church, the raiders broke the side door with the help of crowbars and entered the temple through the stamp and the altar. They were followed by supporters of the OCU,” the message says.

The message continues that after the raider hack, an illegal meeting of the territorial community was held. They were initiated by the deputies of the regional council Yu. Smal and the city council V. Pidgaychuk, and persons who were not members of the religious community of the UOC also took part.

However, the authors of the report report that “believing parishioners of the religious community of St. George’s Church in Khmelnitsky, who came to the planned unction, were not even given the opportunity to enter the temple territory. All this time the gates remained closed.

“Regarding the illegal actions and the raider seizure of the church, the clergy and believers of the religious community of St. George’s Church of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church in Khmelnitsky appealed to law enforcement agencies to protect their rights to worship,” the message summarizes.