The regime's senior religious affairs official, the Plenipotentiary for Religious and Ethnic Affairs in Minsk, Aleksandr Rumak, has refused permission for three more Polish Catholic priests to continue their service in the country. The three – all serving in the northern Vitebsk Diocese – must leave Belarus by later in May. This brings to five the number of foreign citizens – all of them Catholic priests – known to have been forced to halt their ministry in Belarus so far in 2026.

One of the three priests - 63-year-old Fr Zenon Szcząchor – has been serving in Belarus since 1990. Fr Stanisław Mrzygłód, priest of the parish of the Nativity of the Mother of God in Braslav, and Fr Waldemar Kujawa are also being forced to leave (see below).

Forum 18 asked Deputy Plenipotentiary for Religious and Ethnic Affairs Sergei Gerasimenya why Rumak had refused permission for the three Polish priests to continue serving in Vitebsk Diocese. "I won't give comments," he told Forum 18 and put the phone down (see below).

Asked about the refusal for permission for the three priests to continue serving in the diocese, Chief Specialist of the Ideology and Youth Department of Vitebsk Regional Executive Committee Ivan Zdesev put the phone down. Forum 18's subsequent calls went unanswered (see below).

"Certain signs" exist that Plenipotentiary Rumak might also refuse permission to continue service to several Polish priests in the Minsk-Mogilev Catholic Archdiocese, independent Catholic news outlet Katolik.life noted (see below).

Fr Antony Bondarev, an Orthodox priest and missionary from Russia who was serving in the Minsk Diocese of the Belarusian Orthodox Church, has been banned from entering Belarus "for reasons that for me are not clear or justified", he noted. He has been forced to leave his post at a Minsk church, where he has served for more than two years. The circumstances behind the refusal to allow Fr Bondarev back into Belarus remain unclear. Orthodox clergy declined to respond to Forum 18's questions (see below).

The regime strictly controls the exercise by foreign citizens of their freedom of religion and belief, and only religious headquarter bodies that have state permission to exist can invite foreigners to work with them. Plenipotentiary Rumak, alone decides whether the religious work by a foreign citizen is "necessary", and can refuse permission without giving any reason. When he grants such permission, it is for three months, six months or one year (see below).

The regime has consistently tried to reduce the number of foreign citizens the Plenipotentiary allows to work in registered religious organisations. The Plenipotentiary has often rejected applications by leaders of religious organisations for permission to bring in foreign citizens, including applications by Orthodox and Catholic bishops (see below).

Meanwhile, 65-year-old detained Catholic priest Fr Anatol Parakhnevich has suffered a heart attack in pre-trial detention. Arrested by masked, armed men in March, he is apparently being held in Minsk at the KGB secret police's Investigation Prison. He appears to be under investigation on criminal charges of treason (see below).

The official who answered the phone at Minsk City and Region KGB initially denied that it was its number. Asked for a contact number for the KGB Investigation Prison, the official, who did not give his name, said the prison does not have a telephone. Forum 18 gave him all Fr Parakhnevich's details, the apparent charge of treason being investigated against him and the report of his heart attack. Forum 18 asked for details of his current situation. The official said his office would provide a response but could not say when that would be (see below).

Forum 18 was unable to ask Deputy Plenipotentiary for Religious and Ethnic Affairs Sergei Gerasimenya why Fr Parakhnevich is still being held, where he is and what conditions he is in. Gerasimenya had already put the phone down (see below).

Controls on foreigners

Only registered religious associations (headquarter bodies) are allowed to invite foreign citizens for any public religious activity. If the state grants such permission, it is only valid for the one specific religious community for which the headquarter body has obtained it. Individual religious communities are not themselves allowed to apply for such permission.

Under regulations approved by a 2 July 2024 Council of Ministers Decree, the Plenipotentiary for Religious and Ethnic Affairs (the regime's senior religious affairs official) in Minsk gives or refuses permission for foreign citizens to work for religious purposes (whether as a resident or as a visitor).

Foreign citizens must demonstrate sufficient knowledge of Belarus' state languages (Belarusian and Russian) in order to perform religious work. The Plenipotentiary defines the period of permission (up to one year), can at any time withdraw permission, and is not obliged to communicate the reasons for a refusal.

The Plenipotentiary can consult the regional Executive Committee's [local authority] Ideology Department in deciding whether or not to give permission for a foreign religious worker to work.

The Plenipotentiary may refuse permission for a foreign religious worker to conduct religious work without giving any reason. Such decisions are entirely within the Plenipotentiary's power and are difficult for the headquarter bodies which have invited them to challenge.

If the headquarter body's request is granted, the Plenipotentiary issues a decision specifying in which single religious community the foreign citizen can work, and the exact dates for which permission is given (usually three months, six months, or a maximum of one year).

"Religious associations that have invited foreigners to Belarus to carry out religious activities may send them only to religious organisations that are part of their structure and specified in the decision of the Plenipotentiary," the regulations note.

Legally-resident foreign citizens who are not religious workers are banned from any active participation – as against passive attendance – in religious communities. Two warnings within one year or the failure to end a "violation" can lead to the stripping of a community's registration and so permission to legally exist.

In 2017, the then head of the Catholic Church in Belarus, Archbishop Tadeusz Kondrusiewicz, called for the state to end the requirement that foreign citizens need permission to conduct any religious activity.

Permission suddenly withdrawn

Such permission granted to foreign citizens for religious work can be suddenly withdrawn, without any reason being given.

Polish citizen Fr Jozef Geza had served as Catholic parish priest in the western city of Grodno since 1997. In late 2022, Plenipotentiary Aleksandr Rumak refused Fr Geza's bishop's request to extend permission for him to continue to serve in the country. After his last Mass in Grodno's Holy Redeemer Church on 27 December, Fr Geza left Belarus after 25 years' service.

Andrei Aryayev of the Religious Department of the Office of the Plenipotentiary for Religious and Ethnic Affairs refused to say why Plenipotentiary Rumak had refused the bishop's request to extend Fr Geza's right to conduct religious work. "Under the law of Belarus, the Plenipotentiary has the right not to comment on such decisions," Aryayev told Forum 18 in January 2023. "He won't comment." Aryayev too refused to comment on the decision.

Expulsions of invited foreign clergy stepping up?

Jesuit priest Fr Klemens Werth, who had been serving in Vitebsk Catholic diocese, left Belarus in June 2024. A Russian citizen, he had arrived in Belarus in 2015. His initial permission to work in a religious role finally ran out in November 2016. From then on, Fr Werth could serve only in an administrative role in the diocese as the Plenipotentiary's Office repeatedly refused the local bishop's requests for Fr Werth to be allowed to work in a religious role.

"I have been here for almost nine years and don't want to leave," Fr Werth told a farewell meeting of parishioners in June 2024. "I have always been grateful to you for your support, especially when you gathered signatures and wrote letters to the Belarusian authorities requesting permission for me to serve."

In early 2026, the regime's senior religious affairs official, the Plenipotentiary Aleksandr Rumak, refused the request from Bishop Antoni Dziemianko of Pinsk Catholic Diocese for two long-serving Polish priests to continue to be allowed to conduct religious work in Belarus.

Fr Paweł Kruczek – who had served in Belarus for almost 20 years - and Fr Adam Straczyński – who had served in Belarus for 11 years - left the country in early March.

"Your long-time pastor is leaving your parish against his will," Bishop Dziemianko told the former parishioners in Brest Region both of Fr Kruczek and Fr Straczyński on 6 March. "This is painful for all of us."

The forced departure of Fr Kruczek and Fr Straczyński "is a great disaster for our diocese", the Pinsk Diocese's Vicar General Andrei Znoska noted on 7 March. He added that "believers from three districts at once have been orphaned and left without pastoral care, and I don't know what to do next".

Andrei Aryayev of the Religious Department of the Office of the Plenipotentiary for Religious and Ethnic Affairs refused absolutely to say why Plenipotentiary Rumak had refused Bishop Dziemianko's requests to extend the two priests' permission to work in Belarus. "I give no comments," he told Forum 18 in March and put the phone down.

Irina Zakharevich, deputy head of the Ideology and Youth Chief Directorate of Brest Regional Executive Committee (which has responsibility for overseeing religion in the Region), similarly refused absolutely to comment on the enforced departure of the two priests. "Why should I give answers to your questions?" she told Forum 18 in March. She insisted that questions should be directed to the Plenipotentiary's Office in Minsk.

Asked what she would say to local Catholics who have lost their long-serving priests, Zakharevich again refused to respond. She also refused to say if officials from her Directorate had met local Catholics to hear any concerns.

Foreign clergy

The Belarusian Orthodox Church (Moscow Patriarchate) (which has the largest number of registered religious communities) and the Catholic Church (which has the third largest number of registered religious communities) are the communities most hit by such controls on foreigners invited to serve in the country. Both have faced denials of permission to serve (or to continue to serve).

The Plenipotentiary for Religious and Ethnic Affairs has also refused Protestant and Catholic communities permission to invite specific individuals from abroad on short visits to take part in religious meetings.

In an address to a clergy meeting of Minsk Diocese of the Belarusian Orthodox Church of the Moscow Patriarchate, held in Minsk's Belarus hotel on 20 December 2023, Plenipotentiary Aleksandr Rumak told the 239 assembled priests that the Belarusian Orthodox Church had more foreign citizens working in religious roles than any other religious community in Belarus.

Information on the Plenipotentiary's website, which appears to date from 1 January 2024, says that of the 3,725 clergy then working in the country, 127 were foreigners. Of these, 59 were Orthodox, 56 were Catholic, with the remaining 12 unidentified.

Leaders of the Pentecostal Union (which has the second largest number of registered religious communities) and the Baptist Union (which has the fourth largest number of registered religious communities) separately told Forum 18 in March 2026 that they do not have or need foreign citizens permanently serving in Belarus.

The Pentecostal Union leader said they can apply for short-term visits by foreign citizens, for example for conferences. The Union last did so four years ago, he added.

The Baptist Union leader said they "regularly host guests from other countries to participate in religious events". "We easily agree their arrival and participation with the Plenipotentiary for Religious Affairs," he told Forum 18 in March 2026. He added that the Union was working on getting agreement for invitations to foreign guests for the planned Festival of Hope in Chizhovka Arena, a large stadium in Minsk, in mid-May.

Fear of expulsion

Fear of expulsion of priests already serving in the country is a strong factor for the Catholic Church. In 2006 more than 125 of its then around 250 priests were foreign citizens. In 2020, about 80 of its approximately 500 priests were foreign citizens. In 2024, 56 of its priests were foreign citizens.

Fr Yuri Yasevich, spokesperson for the Catholic Bishops' Conference, estimates that approximately 20 foreign Catholic priests are now serving in the country. "But that is just my guess," he told Forum 18 in March 2026.

Three long-serving priests from Vitebsk Diocese forced to leave

Plenipotentiary Aleksandr Rumak refused requests for permission for three long-serving Polish priests to continue serving in parishes in the Vitebsk Catholic diocese in northern Belarus, Christian Vision, which documents violations of freedom of religion or belief and other human rights, and independent Catholic news outlet Katolik.life noted on 2 May.

The three priests will be forced to leave Belarus in May.

(The regime has declared to be "extremist" the social media sites and logo of the Christian Vision group. The regime has similarly listed Katolik.life's website and social media channels as "extremist".)

Fr Stanisław Mrzygłód, a 48-year-old priest of the Salvatorian order, has been priest of the parish of the Nativity of the Mother of God in Braslav.

Fr Zenon Szcząchor, a 63-year-old priest of the Salesian order, began serving in Belarus in 1990. He worked in various parishes over 35 years. He has most recently been assistant priest of the parish of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary in Vidzy, Braslav District.

Fr Waldemar Kujawa, a 57-year-old priest of the Franciscan order, has been assistant priest of the parish of the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary in the village of Udelo, Glubokoye District.

At the same time, Plenipotentiary Rumak gave permission for several other Polish priests to extend their service in Vitebsk Diocese.

"As far as believers know, the decision of the Plenipotentiary for Religious and Ethnic Affairs was influenced by the position of the local authorities in Vitebsk Region," Katolik.life noted.

Forum 18 asked Deputy Plenipotentiary for Religious and Ethnic Affairs Sergei Gerasimenya why Rumak had refused permission for the three Polish priests to continue serving in Vitebsk Diocese. "I won't give comments," he told Forum 18 on 4 May and put the phone down.

Marina Novitskaya, head of the Ideology and Youth Department of Vitebsk Regional Executive Committee, and the two deputy heads were out of the office on 4 May. Officials referred Forum 18 to Chief Specialist Ivan Zdesev. Asked about the refusal for permission for the three priests to continue serving in the diocese, he put the phone down. Subsequent calls went unanswered.

"Certain signs" exist that Plenipotentiary Rumak might also refuse permission to continue service to several Polish priests in the Minsk-Mogilev Catholic Archdiocese, Katolik.life noted.

Minsk-based Russian Orthodox priest denied entry to Belarus

Fr Antony Bondarev is an Orthodox priest and missionary from Russia who, until recently, served in the Minsk Diocese of the Belarusian Orthodox Church. He has been banned from entering Belarus and has been forced to leave his post at a Minsk church, where he has served for more than two years, Christian Vision noted on 25 April.

The circumstances behind the refusal to allow Fr Bondarev back into Belarus remain unclear. Orthodox clergy declined to respond to Forum 18's questions.

In 2023, Fr Bondarev was banned from missionary work in the Russian Orthodox Church in Russia, after which he was made a supernumerary priest (i.e. one not formally employed in a parish, cathedral, or other institution), he writes on his website. He was then advised to find "asylum" in Belarus.

In January 2024, with the blessing of the head of the Belarusian Orthodox Church, Metropolitan Veniamin (Tupeko), he was appointed one of the full-time priests at the Church of the Joy of All Who Sorrow Icon of the Mother of God in the capital Minsk. In March 2024, he was appointed spiritual director of the youth brotherhood named after the holy martyr Vladimir Khirasko at the same church.

But, as Bondarev reported on his Telegram channel, he is now unable to come to "Belorussia" (as he calls the country) and continue serving in the church "for reasons that for me are not clear or justified".

Jailed Catholic priest suffers heart attack

Catholic priest Fr Anatol Yevgenyevich Parakhnevich (born in Belarus 16 June 1960) has suffered a heart attack in pre-trial detention, Katolik.life noted on 25 April, citing information from local Catholics.

Fr Parakhnevich appears to be under investigation on charges of treason.

Criminal Code Article 356, Part 1 ("Treason") punishes: "The disclosure to a foreign state, an international or foreign organisation or their representatives of state secrets of the Republic of Belarus, as well as information constituting state secrets of foreign states, international organisations, inter-state entities, transferred to the Republic of Belarus on the basis of international treaties of the Republic of Belarus or in connection with its participation in these international organisations, inter-state entities, or espionage, or going over to the side of the enemy during a war or armed conflict, or other assistance to a foreign state, an international or foreign organisation or their representatives in carrying out activities aimed at causing harm to the national security of the Republic of Belarus, intentionally committed by a citizen of the Republic of Belarus (treason)." Punishment is a prison term of 7 to 15 years, with or without a fine.

Another Catholic priest, Fr Henryk Okolotovich, was arrested in November 2023 and jailed in December 2024 for 11 years on treason charges. In November 2025, Belarus' authoritarian leader Aleksandr Lukashenko pardoned him and another jailed Catholic priest, Fr Andrei Yukhnevich. The two priests were freed from labour camp and taken to the nunciature in the capital Minsk. They were taken to the airport the same day and flown to Rome. They have not been allowed to return to their former parishes.

The official who answered the phone on 4 May at Minsk City and Region KGB initially denied that it was its number. Asked for a contact number for the KGB Investigation Prison, the official, who did not give his name, said the prison does not have a telephone. Forum 18 gave him all Fr Parakhnevich's details, the apparent charge of treason being investigated against him and the report of his heart attack. Forum 18 asked for details of his current situation. The official said his office would provide a response but could not say when that would be.

Forum 18 was unable to ask Deputy Plenipotentiary for Religious and Ethnic Affairs Sergei Gerasimenya on 4 May 2026 why Fr Parakhnevich is still being held, where he is and what conditions he is in. Gerasimenya had already put the phone down.

On 16 March, masked security officers arrested Fr Parakhnevich in his parish in Alkovichi in Vileika District of Minsk Region, where he has served for nearly 20 years. They searched his home and the Visitation of the Blessed Virgin Mary Church until the evening. The KGB secret police sealed Fr Parakhnevich's home and took the church keys. Officials returned the keys only a week later, meaning that Sunday Mass had to be cancelled on 22 March as the parish had no access to the church.

Fr Parakhnevich has remained in custody since his 16 March arrest. This includes the period of Holy Week running up to Easter (which Catholics celebrated on 5 April). This is the holiest part of the year for Christians. Some have speculated that he is being held at the KGB secret police's Investigation Prison in Minsk.

Fr Yuri Yasevich, spokesperson for the Catholic Bishops' Conference, said the Church has no information about Fr Parakhnevich's case. "We know he was detained and his home was sealed, but we don't know where he is being held or what any accusations against him might be," he told Forum 18 in April.

The website of the Minsk-Mogilev Catholic Archdiocese has removed Fr Parakhnevich as parish priest in Alkovichi from the list of parishes. Another priest is now listed as parish administrator.

Officials refuse to say which state agency arrested Fr Parakhnevich, where he has been held since his arrest and what any accusations against him are. The Information Department of Minsk Region Police did not respond to Forum 18's written questions sent on 9 April.

The duty officer at Vileika District Police would not answer any questions about Fr Parakhnevich. "I can't provide any information," he told Forum 18 in April. He then put the phone down. (END)

More reports on freedom of thought, conscience and belief in Belarus

For background information, see Forum 18's Belarus religious freedom survey

Forum 18's compilation of Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) freedom of religion or belief commitments

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