Ukraine considers: We will severely limit the arrival of the Bratslavs to Uman on Rosh Hashanah

July 27, 2023   

Obstacles and delays: Ukraine's Ambassador to Israel, Yevgeny Kornychuk, addressed the arrival of Breslov Hasidim to Uman in an address to the religious media in Israel today (Thursday). Ambassador Kornychuk said that this year the Ukrainian authorities are considering significantly limiting the quota for Israelis entering Uman on Rosh Hashanah and during the Tishrei holidays, out of concern for the lives of visitors, in light of the security situation and the Russian drone attacks. "Unfortunately, the Russians are sparing no means as part of their war against us. They are killing civilians and bombing areas that have nothing to do with the fighting. Indeed, so far, more than 21,000 civilians have been killed in Ukraine," the ambassador said. "The Uman region is no different, and there is a concern that precisely because of the large concentration of civilians, this will lead the Russians to try to harm as many people as possible, including religious leaders and Jewish believers, in order to create as much chaos as possible." "Uman itself and the suburbs were shelled several times, resulting in dozens of civilians being injured, so we have an obligation to reduce the danger and hence the expected limitation on the number of visitors." The ambassador added: "We hope that the prayers will be fulfilled and that Ukraine will once again be a country that hosts visitors from Israel, including believing Jews who come to Ukraine to visit the graves of the righteous.".