On 16 March, masked security officers arrested 65-year-old Catholic priest Fr Anatol 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 been held 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 (see below).

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 from Minsk (see below).

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 answer Forum 18's written questions (see below).

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. He then put the phone down (see below).

The listed number for the Minsk City and Region KGB went unanswered each time Forum 18 called on 9 and 10 April (see below).

Told that Forum 18 had been unable to find out why Fr Parakhnevich had been arrested, Andrei Aryayev, the Head of the Religious Department of the Office of the Plenipotentiary for Religious and Ethnic Affairs in Minsk, told Forum 18: "I don't have any information either." He then put the phone down (see below).

Olga Topdemir is head of Minsk Region Administration's Ideology and Youth Chief Directorate, one of whose duties is controlling religion. Forum 18 asked her why officials had arrested Fr Parakhnevich. "I don't know what you want from me," she said and then put the phone down (see below).

The arrest of Fr Anatol Parakhnevich came four months after the regime freed two other Catholic priests. Fr Henryk Okolotovich and Fr Andrei Yukhnevich, handed long sentences at closed trials, were pardoned and freed from labour camp in November 2025. They were immediately taken to Minsk airport and travelled to Rome. They both remain there, unable to return to resume their ministry in Belarus (see below).

Since Fr Okolotovich's release and exile, the regime continues to seize his property to pay debts the court said he owed. The authorities have already sold his 19-year-old car, but a small land plot he inherited from his parents failed to attract any bidders, either in February or in April (see below).

Regime's tight controls on freedom of religion or belief

Against Belarus' international human rights commitments, any exercise of freedom of religion or belief without state permission is illegal. Individuals and communities can be punished. Criminal Code Article 193-1 punishes "organisation of or participation in activity by an unregistered political party, foundation, civil or religious organisation" with a fine or imprisonment for up to two years.

A repressive new Religion Law came into force on 5 July 2024. This mandated a one-year timeframe for Belarus' more than 3,500 registered religious communities to submit documentation for compulsory re-registration by 5 July 2025. Any community that had not submitted a re-registration application by the deadline – or whose application was rejected - was to be liquidated through the courts.

It appears that between 3 and 13 percent of local religious communities failed to get the compulsory re-registration. Some have been liquidated through the courts.

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. Aleksandr Rumak, the Plenipotentiary for Religious and Ethnic Affairs in Minsk, the regime's senior religious affairs official, alone decides whether the religious work by a foreign citizen is "necessary", and can refuse permission without giving any reason.

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.

Polish Catholic parish priest Fr Paweł Kruczek – who had served in Belarus for almost 20 years - and Fr Adam Straczyński - for 11 years – were forced to leave in spring 2026. Their Bishop Antoni Dziemianko of Pinsk described their "forced departure" as "painful". Plenipotentiary Rumak refused the Bishop's request for the two to continue to be allowed to conduct religious work in Belarus. Andrei Aryayev of the Religious Department of the Plenipotentiary's Office in Minsk and Irina Zakharevich of the Ideology Directorate of Brest Regional Executive Committee both refused to discuss the refusals with Forum 18 in March.

Two decades' parish service

Fr Anatol Yevgenyevich Parakhnevich (born in Belarus 16 June 1960) – who grew up an orphan - gained his religious education in the Polish city of Bialystok. He was ordained a Catholic priest in June 1995, and served in parishes in Rakov and Zaslavl, in Minsk Region.

Fr Parakhnevich has been priest of the parish of the Visitation of the Blessed Virgin Mary in the small village of Alkovichi in Vileika District of Minsk Region since 2007. He also founded a small museum attached to the church. In 2025, he celebrated the 30th anniversary of his ordination, the independent Catholic news outlet Katolik.life noted.

(In July 2024, the Information Ministry listed Katolik.life as "extremist". In August 2024, a court in Minsk Region declared Katolik.life's Telegram channel "extremist". One month later, the Inspectorate for Supervision of Telecommunications blocked access in Belarus to the Telegram channel on the basis of the Information Ministry's decision. In August 2025, by decision of Grodno's Lenin District Court, the Information Ministry added all Katolik.life's social media pages to the list of "extremist materials".)

On 19 June 2020, the local news website Shlyakh Peramogi (Path of Victory) published a positive article about Fr Parakhnevich. It described him as a "shepherd of human souls, historian and collector of antiquities".

On 22 May 2022, a hostile article in News.by said that Fr Parakhnevich had been among attendees at a "secret" event to mark Poland's Constitution Day (3 May). The event had been organised by the Polish embassy in Minsk which, "strangely", decided to hold it at the Ukrainian embassy.

Arrest

Masked security officers arrested Fr Anatol Parakhnevich in Alkovichi on 16 March. Human rights organisation Viasna (Spring) first reported the arrest on 20 March.

(In August 2023, the Interior Ministry labelled Viasna an "extremist formation" and banned its activities including its website and many of its other social media, adding the group to the "List of organisations, formations and individual entrepreneurs linked to extremist activities".)

On the morning of Monday 16 March, several cars arrived to detain Fr Parakhnevich. "All the officials were wearing masks - they left only in the evening," Viasna noted on 23 March 2026. "The priest's house was sealed, the security forces also searched for something in the church. The faithful cannot enter the church because they do not have keys."

Fr Parakhnevich has been held 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.

"We don't know where he is being held"

Fr Anatol Parakhnevich's parishioners have no information about why he has been arrested or where he is being held.

Soon after Fr Parakhnevich's arrest, the Minsk-Mogilev Archdiocese sent a statement to diocesan priests about his case, Christian Vision noted on 23 March. "According to information received from the faithful of the parish of the Visitation of the Blessed Virgin Mary in the village of Alkovichi, Vileika Deanery, since 17 March 2026, the parish priest Fr Anatol Parakhnevich has been absent, the house where the priest lived is sealed with KGB seals," the statement noted.

"On Sunday 22 March 2026, the church was closed and Holy Mass was not celebrated. There is no official information regarding the whereabouts of Fr Anatol Parakhnevich in the Curia to this day." The Archdiocese asked the priests to pray in connection with the situation.

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 from Minsk on 9 April.

"The priest has been behind bars for over two weeks, and it's unclear why he was detained or what he's accused of," Katolik.life noted on 7 April. "There has been no official statement from the Catholic Church on this matter. Priests are not telling the faithful about their brother's fate, and some note that there is, indeed, no information about the parish priest in Alkovichi. Perhaps the bishops know something, but they are not sharing it."

"He has no relatives, so no one – apart from the bishops – can find anything out about him," Katolik.life lamented.

Officials give no information

Officials have given no public information about why they arrested Fr Anatol Parakhnevich and what charges (if any) he might face. Some have speculated that he is being held at the KGB secret police's Investigation Prison in Minsk.

The listed number for the Minsk City and Region KGB went unanswered each time Forum 18 called on 9 and 10 April.

Olga Topdemir is head of Minsk Region Administration's Ideology and Youth Chief Directorate, one of whose duties is controlling religion. Forum 18 asked her on 9 April why officials had arrested Fr Parakhnevich. "I don't know what you want from me," she said and then put the phone down.

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 on 8 April. He then put the phone down.

Forum 18 wrote to the Information Department of Minsk Region Police before the start of the working day of 9 April asking:
- Which state agency had arrested Fr Parakhnevich;
- What he is being accused of; and
- Where he is being held.
Forum 18 had received no response by the middle of the working day in Minsk of 10 April.

Told that Forum 18 had been unable to find out why Fr Parakhnevich had been arrested, Andrei Aryayev, the Head of the Religious Department of the Office of the Plenipotentiary for Religious and Ethnic Affairs, told Forum 18 on 8 April: "I don't have any information either." He then put the phone down.

Church inaccessible for a week

Officials took the keys of the Visitation of the Blessed Virgin Mary Church in Alkovichi during the 16 March raids and searches. Parishioners were unable to gain access to the church on Sunday 22 March and Mass could not be celebrated. Soon afterwards, officials returned the keys and allowed the church to be used once again. A visiting priest is now celebrating Masses there for local villagers, Katolik.life noted on 7 April.

Fr Parakhnevich's home in Alkovichi remains sealed.

No return for released, exiled Catholic priests

The arrest of Fr Anatol Parakhnevich came four months after the regime freed two other Catholic priests. Fr Henryk Okolotovich and Fr Andrei Yukhnevich, handed long sentences at closed trials, were pardoned and freed from labour camp on 20 November 2025. They were immediately taken to Minsk airport and travelled to Rome. They both remain there, unable to return to resume their ministry in Belarus.

State news agency Belta claimed both priests had committed "serious crimes against the state". Both rejected all the accusations against them. Deputy Plenipotentiary for Religious and Ethnic Affairs Sergei Gerasimenya refused to tell Forum 18 in November 2025 if the regime would allow them to return to Belarus and resume parish ministry.

Since Fr Okolotovich's release and exile, the regime continues to seize his property to pay debts the court said he owed, Christian Vision noted.

In February 2026, on the KGB's orders, the Belyurobespechenie website – which sells off seized and confiscated property – announced two lots: a small plot of land in the village of Novaya Mysh in Baranovichi District and a 2007 Volkswagen. Both had been seized from Fr Okolotovich. The car was sold on 3 February but no bidders came forward for the land plot which he had inherited from his parents, either on 24 February or again on 7 April. (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

Follow us on Bluesky @Forum18

Follow us on Facebook @Forum18NewsService

Follow us on Telegram @Forum18NewsService

Follow us on WhatsApp Forum 18

Follow us on X/Twitter @Forum_18

All Forum 18 material may be referred to, quoted from, or republished in full, if Forum 18 is credited as the source.

All photographs that are not Forum 18's copyright are attributed to the copyright owner. If you reuse any photographs from Forum 18's website, you must seek permission for any reuse from the copyright owner or abide by the copyright terms the copyright owner has chosen.

© Forum 18 News Service. All rights reserved. ISSN 1504-2855.