Metropolitan Arseny of the Svyatogorsk Lavra received suspicion for “leaking” the positions of the Armed Forces of Ukraine to the Russians.
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The SBU reports that during the liturgy he told the parish where the Ukrainian checkpoints were located in the Kramatorsk region. This moment was captured on video, which later appeared on the temple website and Telegram.
The intelligence service believes that in this way Arseniy wanted to convey information to the occupiers. Now he faces eight years in prison.
The SBU message published on its official website states that Arseniy “gave the addresses of Ukrainian military checkpoints to parishioners in a video recording,” and later this video was published on the Lavra’s website and in a local telegram channel.
Thus, the cleric tried to covertly leak to the aggressor the locations of Ukrainian checkpoints in the front-line area, the intelligence service claims.
According to sources of the Ukrainian BBC Service in the SBU, we are talking about the events of autumn 2023.
The SBU also writes that Arseniy, even before the Russian invasion, “expressed pro-Kremlin narratives about the war in Ukraine,” in particular calling Russian aggression a “civil conflict.”
The Ukrainian special service accused Arsenia under a criminal article punishing for disseminating information about the location of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. The issue of a preventive measure is being considered, writes the SBU.
Svyatogorsk Lavra is one of three Ukrainian Orthodox shrines that have the status of a lavra.
She is a member of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church, which in May 2022 made a decision allegedly indicating the end of subordination to the Moscow Patriarchate.
The Lavra belongs to the Donetsk diocese of the UOC-MP, whose center is located in Russian-controlled Donetsk.
Subsequently, the UOC-MP reported that Metropolitan Arseniy was taken away by law enforcement officers.
A message appeared on the website of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church about the detention of the rector of the Svyatogorsk Lavra, Metropolitan Arseny. His whereabouts are currently being determined.
Source: Racurs
I am David Wyatt, a professional writer and journalist for Buna Times. I specialize in the world section of news coverage, where I bring to light stories and issues that affect us globally. As a graduate of Journalism, I have always had the passion to spread knowledge through writing.