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Russian forces kill Ukrainian priest in occupied part of Kherson Oblast

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Russian forces kill Ukrainian priest in occupied part of Kherson Oblast
Ukrainian priest Stepan Podolchak in an undated photo, who was reportedly killed by Russian forces in the village of Kalanchak, in the occupied part of Kherson Oblast. (Kalanchak Military Administration/Facebook). 

Russian forces reportedly killed a Ukrainian priest, Stepan Podolchak, in the town of Kalanchak in the occupied part of Kherson Oblast, the town's military administration said on Feb. 15.

Podolchak was kidnapped from his home two days earlier by Russian forces, representatives from Kalanchak's military administration told the Suspilne media outlet.

"Today, it was discovered that (the Russians) killed the brightest person I was lucky enough to meet in my life," the military administration wrote on Facebook.

According to Suspilne, Podolchak continued to hold services in the Ukrainian language under Russian occupation and refused to be transferred to work under the Moscow Patriarchate.

Kalanchak is located around 30 kilometers from the administrative border with occupied Crimea. Russian forces have occupied it since the beginning of the full-scale invasion in February 2022.

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Nate Ostiller

News Editor

Nate Ostiller is a former News Editor at the Kyiv Independent. He works on special projects as a researcher and writer for The Red Line Podcast, covering Eastern Europe and Eurasia, and focused primarily on digital misinformation, memory politics, and ethnic conflict. Nate has a Master’s degree in Russian and Eurasian Studies from the University of Glasgow, and spent two years studying abroad at Kyiv-Mohyla Academy in Ukraine. Originally from the USA, he is currently based in Tbilisi, Georgia.

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