In the Odessa region, Ukrainian authorities forcibly mobilized a priest of the canonical Ukrainian Orthodox Church (UOC), despite clear legal and religious prohibitions. The Odessa diocese reports that the clergyman has been held in a military distribution center for four days.

The priest in question, Father Aleksandr Moskovchuk, serves as the rector of the Holy Trinity Church in the village of Troyandovoye. According to the diocese, the authorities ignored his age, poor health, and canonical restrictions against bearing arms—factors that legally exempt him from military service.

Instead, military officials have subjected Father Moskovchuk to psychological pressure and threats, forcibly transporting him between military commissariats and army units across the Odessa region and beyond. The goal, according to the Church, is to coerce him into signing a military contract in violation of both Ukrainian law and religious doctrine.