12:35, 26 June 2024Source:
Metropolitan Jonathan (Anatoly Eletskikh) of the Tulchin diocese of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church, convicted in Ukraine for justifying Russian aggression, left for Russia as part of a prisoner exchange, said Andrey Kovalev, official representative of the General Staff of the Ukrainian Armed Forces.
He confirmed that the Metropolitan was transferred as part of the exchange carried out on June 25. According to Kovalev, Ionofan agreed to his exchange on April 10.
Earlier, the press service of the Russian Orthodox Church reported that 75-year-old Jonathan was released on June 22 “at the request of His Holiness Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Russia as a result of negotiations.”
On the day of the exchange, the Russian Orthodox Church reported that Kirill received Jonathan in Moscow and awarded him the Church Order of Sergius of Radonezh, 1st degree. “The Patriarch joyfully welcomed Bishop Jonathan, who, for his loyalty to the Russian Orthodox Church and the Patriarch, “for his unwillingness to make compromises bordering on betrayal, suffered significant sorrows,” the press service wrote.
The Russian Orthodox Church emphasized that the patriarch considered it “his personal duty to intervene in the situation in order to rescue the ruler from these formidable and unpredictable circumstances.”
In August 2023, Metropolitan Jonathan, who heads the Tulchin diocese of the UOC, was sentenced to five years in prison. The court found Jonathan guilty under articles of the Criminal Code of Ukraine on denial of Russian aggression, encroachment on the territorial integrity of the country, actions aimed at overthrowing the constitutional order and violation of the equality of citizens depending on religious beliefs.
According to investigators, the Metropolitan distributed propaganda leaflets among believers, and on one of the Russian Orthodox Church websites he posted publications in support of the Russian military. Jonathan himself denied the accusations. The BBC Russian Service then noted that the Metropolitan became the first current head of the UOC diocese to be sentenced to a real prison term.
(C)MEDUZA 2024
I’m glad that Ukraine got rid of this crook. Now the crook is in the land of other crooks, where he’ll fit right in and feel right at home.