Representatives of the OCU seized St. Elijah's Church in the Chernivtsi region of Ukraine

In the Ukrainian village of Zabolotye, Chernivtsi region, activists of the schismatic Orthodox Church of Ukraine (OCU) seized St. Elijah's Church belonging to the canonical Ukrainian Orthodox Church (UOC). This was announced on May 30 by the Union of Orthodox Journalists (UOJ) in the Telegram channel.

"On May 30, 2025, clerics and activists of the OCU, with the support of the police, broke into the territory of the St. Elias Church of the UOC in the village of Zabolotye in Bukovina and stormed the church," the UOJ said.

It is specified that the raiders were able to break open the doors of the temple and break inside. During this process, they also pushed and beat parishioners. At the same time, the police provided support to the invaders and covered them with themselves during the breaking of the doors.

"It is reported from the scene that the raiders brought karemats and food packages to the temple. Some of the OCU representatives have dispersed, and some of the raiders, including people in military uniforms, are going to spend the night in an Orthodox shrine," the publication says.

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Earlier, on May 23, in the Ukrainian village of Volnoye in the Dnipropetrovsk region, schismatics from the OCU seized the church of the Holy Great Martyr and Healer Panteleimon of the canonical UOC. It was clarified that representatives of the OCU were spreading false statements that the church community itself had decided to convert to the Orthodox Church of Ukraine.