Bancheny Monastery reports provocation

Bancheny Monastery. Photo: the monastery’s Facebook page

The Ascension Bancheny Monastery of the UOC reported a provocation on the monastery grounds. The corresponding statement was published on the monastery’s official Facebook page on February 20, 2026.

“Dear brothers and sisters! Today we had uninvited guests at our monastery who left unpleasant items behind. All of them were recorded by video and audio surveillance cameras,” the statement says.

The monastery expressed hope that the unknown individuals would return and take the items they left, and that the situation would be resolved peacefully. “We hope that these individuals will return and remove the things they left behind, and we count on understanding and a peaceful resolution of the situation. May God grant everyone the wisdom to come to their senses and preserve us all in peace,” the monastery noted.

The Bancheny Monastery did not disclose details about what exactly the unknown persons had left behind.

As previously reported by the UOJ, Metropolitan Longin, who adopted hundreds of children and was recognized as a Hero of Ukraine, became a target of slander amid pressure on the UOC. A blogger published a video allegedly featuring children from the orphanage at the monastery making unconfirmed accusations of abuse. The video materials were circulated by propaganda media outlets. The monastery itself had previously been subjected to arson, and direct threats have also been made against the clergy.

A working group from the Chernivtsi Regional Administration, which conducted a “monitoring visit” to the children under the care of Metropolitan Longin (Zhar), found no confirmation of the fake claims made by blogger Edgar Kalancha.

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