The Volodymyr-Volyn diocese of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church reports about the illegal entry and arson of two buildings of the monastery complex in honor of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary in the village of Verbka in Volyn region. About that reports the press service of the diocese.

“On April 14, at noon, there was an illegal entry and arson of two buildings of the monastery complex in honor of the Nativity of St. John the Baptist, which is located on the island of the village of Verbka, near Kovel. One of the household buildings burned completely, the other, where the house church and refectory were equipped, suffered partial damage. The arson was committed after the end of the Sunday Divine Liturgy. On the ashes of the monastery buildings can be seen broken windows from the outside,” the diocese said.

The diocese refutes possible information throws about spontaneous combustion and other malfunctions that could lead to a fire in the monastery.

“The vicar of the monastery Archimandrite Varlaam (Boychuk) testifies that after the divine service, as always, he himself inspected all the monastery premises – there were no sources of fire in them. The fire was reported at 16:52, liquidated at 17:45 – informs the press service of the State emergency service of Volyn. At the scene arrived rescuers of the 19th and 4th State fire and rescue units of the city of Kovel. Upon arrival, the rescuers promptly conducted a reconnaissance and with the help of three water barrels tamed the fire”, – summarized in the diocese.

Recall, earlier we reported that on February 27, 2024, on the territory of the temple of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of Archangel Michael and St. Luke of Odessa, there was a fire in the refectory. According to the data from the surveillance cameras it was determined that there was arson.