Kiev, July 27, 2016. According to the count by the Ukrainian Orthodox Church (MP), 30,000 people gathered on Vladimirskaya Gorka (St. Vladimir Hill) in Kiev for a prayer on the Day of the Baptism of Rus’. His Eminence Metropolitan Onuphry, first hierarch of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church (Moscow Patriarchate) also lead a memorial prayer service for all those who died during the tragic events on Maidan (Liberty) Square in February 2014.
Law enforcement agencies earlier said that the prayer on St. Vladimir Hill and the adjacent territories had from 8,000 to 10,000 participants.
Andrey Krishchenko, the head of the Kiev National Police, said earlier today on 112.Ukraine TV that 10,000 believers gathered on Vladimirskaya Gorka.
"We are not taking any extra security measures. What is being done is enough [...] There are up to 6,000 law enforcement officers, like before," Krishchenko said.
According to police information, no serious incidents have been registered, despite reports yesterday of fake bombs and hand grenades found along the road, and the procession participants declined the Ukrainian authorities’ offer to bus them to the prayer site.
The website of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church estimated that from 80,000 to 100,000 people participated in the cross procession in Kiev. This was based on a mathematical calculation.
"The procession stretched for a distance of at least 3 kilometers, with a minimum width of 20 meters. Accordingly, the total area of the procession covered no less than 60,000 square meters. Therefore, a conservative estimate places the total number of participants in the procession in the Ukrainian capital at 80,000 to 100,000 people ", explained the authors.
