Greek site Romfea reports brutal beating of priests in Chernivtsi

UOC priest Fr. Roman was beaten by militants near the cathedral in Chernivtsi. Photo: Orthobuk

On June 18, 2025, the Greek news portal Romfea published an article titled “Shocking Video of the Beating of a Ukrainian Church Priest.” Greek journalists reported that serious incidents occurred at the Holy Spirit Cathedral of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church (UOC) in Chernivtsi, during which the beating of a priest was caught on video and widely circulated on social media.

Citing the UOC press service, the publication noted that the video, released the day after the attempted church seizure, shows followers of the OCU brutally attacking a priest of the cathedral.

“The video captures the moment when followers of the autocephalous church violently assault a priest of the holy temple, breaking his ribs, splitting his brow – requiring stitches – and causing internal injuries,” the article states.

Romfea also shared the video, showing the priest’s condition shortly after the attack.

The journalists commented that new footage reveals the violence with even greater brutality: “In the video, a man throws the priest to the ground and beats him with particular fury, while other attackers join in, striking him as a group and eventually dragging him across the ground.”

Reflecting on the severity of the assault, Romfea emphasized that “the incident has shocked the Ukrainian Church, becoming yet another episode in the recent wave of violence against its clergy.”

“Finally,” the outlet noted, “the priest who was attacked, Fr. Vitaliy, addressed Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew via video message, wishing him health and expressing hope that he never finds himself in the same condition – namely, in a hospital at the hands of Epifaniy’s spiritual children.”

The story has already been viewed by more than 300,000 readers of the Greek platform.

As previously reported by the UOJ, a media outlet supportive of Constantinople acknowledged the seizure of the cathedral in Chernivtsi.

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