Lithuanian citizen detained in Belarus after visiting Old Believers

A Lithuanian citizen was detained in the village of Kuklyany in Belarus’ Pastavy district during a religious service attended by local Old Believers.

The man is accused of conducting religious services in Belarus without the required authorization, according to Vitsiebskaya Viasna.

The detainee had reportedly planned to officially register a religious community with the Pastavy District Executive Committee. However, a working group of the local authorities said it had found what it described as “signs of document falsification” in the registration papers.

Human rights defenders note that Kuklyany is a historic center of Old Believer culture in the Vitsebsk region. Most local residents belong to the Old Orthodox Pomorian Church, a priestless branch of the Old Believer movement, and continue to observe their traditional religious practices.

The village is also home to a unique historical landmark — the wooden Old Believer Church of the Dormition of the Blessed Virgin Mary, built in the first half of the 19th century.