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Russia demands release of Orthodox cleric detained in Ukraine
  + stars: | 2023-07-15 | by ( ) www.reuters.com   time to read: +2 min
July 15 (Reuters) - Russia on Saturday demanded the immediate release of a senior Orthodox cleric detained in Kyiv on suspicion of inflaming religious hatred and justifying Russia's invasion of Ukraine. A Kyiv court ordered pre-trial detention on Friday for Metropolitan Pavlo, a senior figure in the Ukrainian Orthodox Church who had been under house arrest since April. Ukraine has been cracking down on the Moscow-linked Ukrainian Orthodox Church, claiming it is pro-Russian and collaborating with Moscow. Patriarch Kirill, head of the Russian Orthodox Church, on Saturday appealed to Pope Francis, the head of the United Nations and other religious and political figures to show support for the detained cleric. "I urge you to pay attention to the ongoing persecution of the canonical Ukrainian Orthodox Church in Ukraine and to take all possible measures to protect Metropolitan Pavlo ... from lawless persecution," Kirill said.
Persons: Pavlo, Maria Zakharova, Kirill, Pope Francis Organizations: Saturday, Kyiv, Metropolitan Pavlo, Ukrainian Orthodox Church, Russian Foreign Ministry, Church, Moscow, Russian Orthodox Church, United Nations, Reuters, Thomson Locations: Russia, Kyiv, Ukraine, Ukrainian, Russian, Moscow
The hearing was adjourned to Monday after the cleric, Metropolitan Pavlo of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church (UOC), complained of ill health. The court appearance came after Pavlo was questioned by the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU), which presented the cleric with a series of accusations on the same issue shortly before. The UOC has been accused of maintaining links to the pro-invasion Russian Orthodox Church, which used to be its parent church but with which the UOC says it all broke ties in May 2022. The UOC is Ukraine's second-largest church, though most Ukrainian Orthodox believers belong to a separate branch of the faith, the Orthodox Church of Ukraine, formed four years ago by uniting branches independent of Moscow's authority. In a video posted to the UOC website earlier in the day, Pavlo said he condemned Russia's invasion of Ukraine.
Kyiv is cracking down on the Ukrainian Orthodox Church (UOC) on the grounds it is pro-Russian and collaborating with Moscow, a charge the church denies. In a statement, the UOC said a Kyiv court also ordered Metropolitan Pavlo to wear an electronic bracelet. The Interfax Ukraine and Ukrinform news agencies said Pavlo had been given 60 days of house arrest. Prosecutors said the house arrest and electronic bracelet were precautionary measures and that the case against Pavlo would continue. Moscow said last month that Ukraine was "illegally attacking" the UOC, adding this confirmed the need for its military operations in Ukraine.
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