Ukrainian Police Seize Control of St. Michael Monastery in Pereyaslav
Law enforcement and museum officials seized control of the historic monastery amid clashes with worshippers and monks.
PEREYASLAV — Police officers and representatives of the National Historical and Ethnographic Reserve “Pereyaslav” on May 11, 2026, began seizing the Ukrainian Orthodox Church’s (UOC) St. Michael Monastery, according to reports circulated by the Pershyi Kozatskyi Telegram channel.
Eyewitness accounts and video footage from the scene showed special forces and enforcement personnel surrounding the monastery, blocking entrances and exits, and using physical force against believers who attempted to defend the site. Parishioners were reportedly dragged away from the gates as tensions escalated outside the historic shrine.
Authorities and museum representatives later entered the monastery complex and began taking inventory of its property, with reports claiming that monks’ private cells were also accessed during the operation. The monastery’s abbot, Archimandrite Antoniy, was removed as enforcement officers proceeded with the lockout and transfer of control to state representatives.
As reported by UOJ-Ukraine:
Back in June 2023, raiders attempted a forceful seizure, but at that time the community, led by Archimandrite Antoniy (Pukhkan), managed to defend the shrine by forming a “human shield” in the path of the attackers.
In November 2025, the Pereyaslav authorities moved to legal pressure: city council deputies adopted a decision to “remove obstacles” to the work of the reserve, effectively instructing the police to evict the monks.
The city’s mayor, Viacheslav Saulko, openly demanded the immediate enforcement of the court decision on eviction, accusing law enforcement of “insufficient activity.”
Previously, the UOJ reported that a UOC church in Kuzmyn was forcibly seized amid illegal re-registration.
