Gennady Kernes, the Jewish mayor of Kharkov who was shot by unknown assailants on the streets of his city - and flown to Israel on a special plane, woke up last night at the Rambam Medical Center in Haifa.
• Kharkiv: An unknown assailant shot the Jewish mayor – critically wounding him
As you may recall, Gennady Karnes, the mayor of Kharkiv, Ukraine, was shot and critically injured on one of the streets of Kharkiv while taking his morning run. He was rushed on a special flight and hospitalized at Elisha Hospital in Haifa, from where he was later transferred to Rambam.
Rabbi Moshe Moskowitz, Chabad emissary and rabbi of Kharkov, who is a personal friend of Gennady, told the website chabad.org that the mayor has woken up and is speaking. Moskowitz is making sure that Chabad people in Haifa will come to visit him, and that he will soon come to Israel himself.
• After the assassination: The Jewish mayor of Kharkov was hospitalized in Israel
According to the messenger, the community members are worried that something will happen on May 9. May 9 is the day of the Russian victory over the Nazis, and it is celebrated by older Soviets to this day.
""After the latest news in Odessa, people are more worried about the speed with which the situation there has deteriorated," he said. "We hope that the situation here will remain calm, and peace will return to this country.".