Cross sawn off Ukrainian church in Poland; ambassador demands that those responsible be punished
Vasyl Bodnar, Ukraine's ambassador to Poland, reported this on Facebook, according to Ukrainska Pravda ("Ukrainian Truth").
"Today, on the eve of a major Christian holiday – the Exaltation of the Holy Cross – we have learned that unidentified perpetrators have damaged the roof and cut down the cross from the main dome of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary in Legnica.
The Embassy of Ukraine in the Republic of Poland has filed an urgent note to the Polish Ministry of Foreign Affairs, while the Consulate General of Ukraine in Wrocław has urged local law enforcement to take necessary action and ensure that those responsible are held accountable."
The ambassador expressed his concern and outrage on behalf of the Ukrainian community in Poland.
"I call on law enforcement authorities of the Republic of Poland to take all necessary steps so that this crime, and all others targeting Ukrainians and Ukrainian identity, are prosecuted to their full conclusion – court rulings under Polish law," Bodnar urged.
"I call on our Polish friends and partners to address anti-Ukrainian sentiments in Polish society. We believe that, for both the Polish and Ukrainian people, harming churches is unacceptable under any circumstances," he stressed.
In August, reports emerged that Polish authorities were investigating an incident involving a monument to the victims of the Volyn tragedy, on which the red-and-black revolutionary flag of the Organisation of Ukrainian Nationalists (OUN) and the slogan "Glory to the UPA" had been painted.
On 13 August, Polish police announced the detention of two 17-year-old Ukrainians for supposedly painting red and black flags and leaving "Bandera slogans" on buildings and memorial sites dedicated to the victims of the Volhyn tragedy.
