President Zelensky says he busted senior Orthodox clerics being tied to Moscow, also he sent missiles to two towns with mercs and Russiansoldiers

In President Zelensky's nightly briefing he also revealed that Ukraine's top security officials have ordered punitive measures against seven senior clerics as part of a crackdown on a branch of the Orthodox Church with longstanding ties to Moscow.

The clerics are among Orthodox leaders known to have been sympathetic to Russia's portrayal of its 10-month-old invasion of Ukraine. The Kremlin says it is protecting Russian-speakers and has annexed four regions it says are historically Russian lands.

'We are doing everything to ensure that no strings are available to be pulled by the aggressor state that could make Ukrainian society suffer,' Zelensky said in announcing the measure in his video address.

Under an order issued by Ukraine's Security Council, all seven have had their assets seized and are subject to a ban on a range of economic and legal activities as well as a de facto travel ban.


Ukrainian forces have attacked a hotel in Kadiivka where members of Russia's brutal private Wagner military group were based, killing many, a local leader has claimed.


It comes as Ukrainian officials have also claimed that as many as 200 Russian troops have been killed or wounded in a missile strike in the occupied city of Melitopol.

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