Court in Kozelets, Chernihiv Region, Ukraine, convicts Jehovah’s Witness man for leaving military service

A court in Ukraine’s Chernihiv region has convicted a man, identified in the source as one of Jehovah’s Witnesses, of unauthorized departure from military service. The ruling was issued by the Kozelets District Court.

According to the court’s judgment, the man was called up for military service on February 12, 2025. He was assigned as a trainee at a training school for air defense specialists in the Ground Forces. On February 15, 2025, he left the military on his own and remained away until March 26 of that year.

The man told the court that he had requested alternative service and said he was willing to serve the state in another way and cooperate with it. The source states that Ukrainian law provides for alternative service when military service conflicts with a person’s religious beliefs. It also says the man’s religious position was the basis of his stated refusal to take up arms, which the court addressed in its judgment.

The source also states that Ukraine’s continued state of war is a sufficient basis for mobilizing all citizens, including Jehovah’s Witnesses. The court found the man guilty under part 5 of Article 407 of Ukraine’s Criminal Code, which concerns unauthorized leaving of a military unit or place of service. The source does not report the sentence imposed.

Under the procedure described in the source, an appeal may be lodged with the trial judge within 30 days of the verdict being announced.

Source: Read the original report (translated from Ukrainian)