A court in the Lviv region sentenced a Jehovah's Witness to five years in prison for desertion

The Stryi City and District Court in Lviv Oblast handed down a guilty verdict to a man who deserted after being mobilized, citing his religious beliefs. According to ZAXID.NET, the defendant, a member of Jehovah’s Witnesses, was found guilty of desertion and sentenced to 5 years in prison.

According to the case file, a native of Mykolaiv in Lviv Oblast named Yuriy G. was mobilized in November 2024 to serve as a cook. However, just a few days after being drafted, he left his military unit without permission. About 10 months later, the man voluntarily turned himself in to the State Bureau of Investigations.

During the trial, the defendant insisted that his religious beliefs prohibited him from handling weapons or wearing a military uniform. He claimed that as early as 2022, he had applied for alternative non-military service and did not consider himself a member of the military, since he had not even worn a uniform. Nevertheless, the court rejected these arguments. Judge Stepan Sas emphasized that mobilization during martial law does not provide for the possibility of replacing military service with an alternative form, and that the right to freedom of religion is not absolute and does not exempt one from the constitutional duty to defend the state.