UMAN, Ukraine (AP) — Prayer chants and the sounding of conventional ram’s horns fill the air within the city of Uman, in central Ukraine, as 1000’s of pilgrims be part of an annual gathering to mark the Jewish new yr, regardless of the war against Russia.
Uman, 200 kilometers (125 miles) south of the Ukrainian capital Kyiv, is remodeled for the celebration of Rosh Hashana. The streets are plastered with indicators in Hebrew for the pilgrims who come to wish on the tomb of Rabbi Nachman, the great-grandson of the founding father of Hasidic motion.
Regardless of Ukrainian and Israeli diplomats warning of the safety risk, officers informed The Related Press that 35,000 pilgrims made the journey to Uman this yr, the identical as in earlier years.
Rabbi Moshe Reuven Azman, a number one determine in Ukraine’s Jewish neighborhood, was a kind of who urged worldwide pilgrims to not go to Ukraine on account of safety issues however acknowledged that many would nonetheless make the journey whatever the potential dangers concerned.
“Yearly (since Russia’s full-scale invasion), I communicate on Israeli tv and radio, and I name on the (Jewish) pilgrims to not come to Ukraine. My major concern is for the lives of individuals,” he mentioned.
Because the warfare in Ukraine rages for a 3rd yr, Russian military fires barrages of drones and missiles at Ukraine virtually each day, leaving no area fully protected. Lively fight is happening alongside a 1,000-kilometer (620-mile) entrance, as Russian forces press their benefit within the eastern Donetsk region. This yr alone, the Russian military has managed to seize a number of thousand sq. kilometers (miles) of Ukrainian territory, with the capture of the city of Vuhledar being their most up-to-date notable achievement.
Nachman Shitrit, 18, who traveled to Uman from Haifa, Israel together with his father, mentioned he had made the pilgrimage over a dozen instances.
“The warfare right here didn’t scare me from touring to Ukraine; there’s additionally warfare the place I got here from,” he informed the AP.
This yr’s pilgrimage comes at an more and more unstable time within the Center East. Israel is now engaged in a multifront warfare that features the battles with Hamas in Gaza and Hezbollah in Lebanon, assaults from Iran and strikes inside Syria, plus ongoing confrontations with armed militants within the West Financial institution and occasional assaults launched by Iranian-backed militants in Iraq and by the Houthis in Yemen.
The hostilities posed further challenges to some pilgrims travelling to Ukraine this yr.
Ukraine closed its air area in February 2022, initially of Russia’s full-scale invasion, forcing guests to journey overland by way of different European nations with a view to attain Uman.
The United Jewish Neighborhood of Ukraine mentioned Wednesday that greater than 14,000 pilgrims had been unable to journey to Uman, partly on account of Iran’s attack on Israel Tuesday. Iran fired a barrage of almost 180 missiles, inflicting cancellation of a number of flights from Israel in an act Iranian officers known as retaliation for Israel’s recent strikes on Hezbollah.
Meir Shpanier, 23, who travelled from Tel Aviv, mentioned the problem of the journey had made the expertise extra significant to him this yr.
“I managed to get right here by a miracle. My journey agent booked airplane tickets from Tel Aviv to Budapest. From there, a Ukrainian driver picked me up, and we drove 22 hours to Uman. However a few of my mates needed to journey by way of 5 nations.”
“As a result of I needed to work exhausting to get right here, it means extra to me now. I believe we’re all blessed to be right here,” Shpanier mentioned.
