On March 5—the tenth day of the large-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine—Major Archbishop Sviatoslav Shevchuk, the head of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church, said that “today, most of all, our hearts are bleeding for cities that are blocked by the enemy, and where the humanitarian catastrophe really occurs.”

“Our thoughts flow to Mariupol, to Volnovakha, to Kherson,” he said. “The enemy blocks, surrounds large cities, does not allow people to leave them, does not allow any supplies of food, enemy bombs fly over the cities, sowing death. Lord, save your people.”