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Despite resistance from parishioners of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church, on May 6, 2025, St. Andrew’s Church in Cherkasy was seized by raiders from the OCU (Orthodox Church of Ukraine). Notably, this takeover was effectively led by Cherkasy Mayor Anatoliy Bondarenko. The police who arrived at the scene not only failed to stop the illegal actions of masked mercenaries but also assisted in expelling all parishioners from the church grounds, afterward barring the faithful from entering the church.

Metropolitan Feodosiy of Cherkasy and Kaniv of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church (UOC) has officially addressed the authorities of Cherkasy Oblast with a statement expressing deep concern over the actions of the Cherkasy City Council and representatives of the Orthodox Church of Ukraine (OCU).

Latvian blogger Dmitry Mataev, having served a one-year prison sentence on politically charged accusations, has left Latvia for a safer location. Mataev was released from custody pending the appeal of his case. However, remaining in Latvia posed a risk to his safety.

Ukraine continues to tighten its control over the information space, systematically targeting journalists, bloggers, and political analysts whose views diverge from the official government stance. Recently, prominent media figures—TV host Alexander Shelest and political analyst Vadim Karasev—have faced such restrictions.

Aivo Peterson is an Estonian politician known for his active efforts to protect the interests of the Russian-speaking minority in Estonia. He has repeatedly criticized Tallinn’s official policies, visited Donbass as an election observer, and participated in information campaigns that Estonian authorities consider pro-Russian propaganda.

April 24, 2025, marks one year since the arrest of Metropolitan Arseniy (Yakovenko), abbot of the Holy Dormition Sviatohirsk Lavra. The hierarch of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church (UOC) was detained by the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) and remains in custody to this day. According to the monastery’s press service, preparatory hearings in the Sloviansk City-District Court of Donetsk Region are being held via video conference without public broadcast. Once the main hearings begin, the proceedings will transition to a fully closed format, meaning all further court decisions will be kept secret.

For the first time in Ukraine, a public apology has been issued to the Ukrainian Orthodox Church (canonical UOC of Kyiv Patriarchate) Sonya Koshkina, editor of «Levyy Bereg» («Левый берег») and a known supporter of the Orthodox Church of Ukraine (OCU), was compelled to retract false allegations against Bishop Nikita of Ivano-Frankivsk, previously published on Levyy Bereg.