At least two churches in the self-proclaimed ‘Donetsk people’s republic’ [DPR] have been forcibly closed, and the premises themselves seized by the Kremlin-backed militants. Judging by new rules on ‘re-registration’, many other religious communities are likely to find themselves outlawed in the near future.
Alexander Moseychuk, Pastor of the New Life Church in Makiyivka reports that on 6 July, seven ‘DPR’ representatives, some of them armed, burst into the church and announced that it no longer belongs to them. Father Alexander notes that their Church has helped over 700 people during the four years since the beginning of the war. Around 120 believers can be expected to arrive at the gates of the Church on Sunday and will find it sealed. He asks if this augurs the beginning of persecution.
