In Zolotonosha, TRC officers detained a priest of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church, despite the existence of an official deferment

In the city of Zolotonosha, Cherkasy Oblast, an incident occurred involving the detention of a member of the clergy of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church, Archpriest Andriy Kononenko, who—despite having legal grounds for deferment—was forcibly taken to the regional recruitment center. This was reported by the Telegram channel “Pershyi Kozatskyi.”

According to the information received, Archpriest Andriy Kononenko, who serves as rector of St. Nicholas Church in the village of Bubnova Slobodka, arrived at the regional recruitment center to update his personal information. The priest has a confirmed deferment from mobilization because he is raising a child with a disability, which is officially recorded in the “Reserve” registry. However, military registration office staff ignored these documents, calling the child’s health condition “fiction.”

Furthermore, according to the source, the priest was transported to Cherkasy against his will. At present, Father Andriy refuses to sign any documents. Representatives of the TRC, in turn, are threatening to involve the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU), accusing the priest of alleged attempts to “incite the mobilized to revolt,” and are insisting on his forced mobilization.

It is important to note that the St. Nicholas Church in Bubnova Slobodka was previously seized by supporters of the OCU in 2025. According to reports, Archpriest Andrei Kononenko has long faced threats from local activists opposed to the Ukrainian Orthodox Church (UOC).

As a reminder, on September 11, 2026, it became known that Archpriest Alexy Mikitenko, the of the Church of the Holy Martyrs Theodore and Anastasia in the city of Alexandria, had been detained by TRC officers.