sTDe | NAnews — Israel’s event listing: a new guide to events, cities, and tickets

In Israel, concerts, performances, stand-up evenings, festivals, exhibitions, lectures, family programs, city celebrations, and chamber meetings take place almost every day. But for someone who wants to choose an event, a single announcement is often not enough. They need to understand where the event is taking place, when it starts, how much tickets cost, whether the event is suitable for children, if there is a convenient venue, which city is best to choose a date, and whether it is worth planning a trip in advance.

This is exactly why sTDe | NAnews is being developed — a new event listing in Israel, where events will be organized into a clear system: by genres, cities, dates, venues, tickets, and thematic selections. The project is available at https://stde.co.il/ and is being created as a convenient navigator for the cultural, urban, and event life of the country.

Not just a list of events, but a clear listing of Israel

The main task of sTDe | NAnews — is to help a person quickly answer a simple but important question: where to go today, tomorrow, on the weekend, or in the coming month. In reality, this question almost always breaks down into a chain of clarifications: concert or theater, Tel Aviv or Haifa, family program or evening event, open seating or reserved tickets, large hall or chamber venue, all-day festival or short performance.

A regular list of events often does not address these questions. Therefore, sTDe | NAnews is built not as a dry catalog, but as an event guide. In it, not only the date and name are important, but also the context: who the event is suitable for, what makes it special, where it takes place, how to check details in advance, and why this particular event might be interesting.

For NAnews — News of Israel launching such a project is logical: alongside the news and analytical agenda, a practical urban layer appears — a listing that shows the lively side of Israel through concerts, theater, festivals, exhibitions, lectures, and events for the whole family.

What categories will be important on sTDe | NAnews

The event platform should be convenient not only for finding one specific concert. It should cater to different behavior scenarios: someone is looking for tickets to a famous artist, someone is choosing a play, someone is planning a family weekend, someone wants to see what’s happening in the city near their home.

This approach helps cover not just one search query, but the entire topic. The user can start with “events in Israel,” then move to “concerts in Tel Aviv,” then specify “where to go with children in Haifa” or “festivals in Israel on the weekend.” A good listing should accompany them at every step.

Geography: Tel Aviv, Haifa, Jerusalem, and the entire country

For Israel, geography is especially important. Events take place not only in the center of the country. The listing should show Tel Aviv, Haifa, Jerusalem, Ashdod, Netanya, Bat Yam, Rishon LeZion, Petah Tikva, Holon, Be’er Sheva, cities of the north, center, and south of Israel.

A person often chooses not only an event but also a route. They need to understand if it’s convenient to get there, if it’s worth going to another city, if there’s parking nearby, how late the program ends, and if the venue is suitable for family visits. Therefore, city selections on Event Listing sTDe | NAnews can become a separate strong direction: “where to go in Tel Aviv,” “events in Haifa,” “Jerusalem listing,” “events in Ashdod,” “weekends in central Israel,” “festivals in the north.”

What should be in a good announcement

A good event announcement should save the reader’s time. It should immediately answer the main questions: what is happening, where, when, who is performing, how long the event lasts, who it is suitable for, how much tickets cost, if there are restrictions, how to check seat availability, and what to know before attending.

Main event data

In a card or article about the event, it is important to specify:

• date and time;
• city and venue;
• address or area;
• genre and format;
• cost or price range;
• link to tickets;
• age restrictions;
• duration;
• organizer or venue;
• important attendance conditions.

But that’s not enough. For a lively listing, it’s necessary to explain what makes the event different from others. For example, a concert may be part of a tour, a play — a rare production, a festival — a family city event, an exhibition — a temporary exposition, and a stand-up — an evening with a limited number of seats.

Tickets: how to move from interest to action

The user has two states. The first — they are just looking at what’s happening. The second — they are ready to buy a ticket. The listing should work for both scenarios.

If a person is still choosing, they need selections, city comparisons, format descriptions, and clear navigation. If they have already decided to go, they need a quick transition to tickets, exact date, venue, price, and purchase conditions. Therefore, on sTDe | NAnews, the ticket office block and external pages where you can check seat availability, cost, and current conditions are important.

This is where the project can be useful not only as a listing but also as a landing page for action: read, understood, chose, moved to the ticket.

Why this is important for NAnews readers

The audience of NAnews — News of Israel is used to receiving not only the fact but also an explanation: what happened, why it is important, how it is connected to Israel, cities, society, culture, and everyday life. sTDe | NAnews continues this logic, but in an event format.

News shows what the country lives by at the level of politics, security, society, and international agenda. The listing shows another side of the same country: concerts, performances, city festivals, exhibitions, family events, lectures, and meetings. Together, this gives a more complete picture of Israel — not only through the events of the day but also through cultural and city life.

Frequently asked questions about sTDe | NAnews

Can events be searched by cities? Yes, city navigation should become one of the foundations of the project.

Will there be weekend selections? This format is especially important because many people look for events just before Friday and Saturday.

Are separate pages needed for concerts, theater, and festivals? Yes, because each category has its own user path and questions.

Can the site be used as a ticket office? The project can combine announcements, selections, and transitions to tickets, helping the user move from choice to purchase.

How is sTDe | NAnews different from a regular catalog? By presenting the event with context: city, format, audience, attendance details, and practical benefits.

Conclusion

sTDe | NAnews — is an event listing of Israel that can become not just a list of events, but a full-fledged guide to the cultural and city life of the country. The project combines concerts, theater, stand-up, festivals, exhibitions, lectures, family programs, cities, venues, tickets, and thematic selections.

For the reader, this means a convenient path from the first question “where to go?” to a specific decision: choose a date, city, event, venue, and ticket. For the media ecosystem of NAnews, this is a new practical format that complements news, analytics, and public agenda with a live map of events in Israel.

This is not about the influence of states or external control. It’s about people shaped by the experience of Jewish life in Odessa, Kharkiv, Kherson — cities where security was never guaranteed, and the ability to survive became part of everyday culture. This experience was in demand at a time when the young state of Israel needed not just intelligence, but a survival system. This was noted by Valery Boyanju in “Odessa Life”.

Ukrainian Jewish Reality as a Factor of Thinking

Jewish Ukraine at the end of the 19th and the first half of the 20th century was a space of constant risk. Pogroms, revolutions, changes of empires, the Civil War, Stalinist repressions, Nazi occupation — all these are not abstract chapters of textbooks, but personal memories of thousands of families. For these people, the state was rarely a source of protection. More often — a source of threat or, at best, indifference.

It was in such an environment that a type of thinking was formed, based on three principles: not trusting declarations, verifying reality, and acting in advance. This approach later became one of the unspoken foundations of the Israeli security system.

Mossad as a Product Not Only of the State but Also of the Diaspora

Officially, Mossad was created in 1949, after the declaration of Israel’s independence. At an early stage, it was a compact structure with limited resources. However, it quickly began to rely on people with experience in underground struggle, military intelligence, and living under constant threat.

Immigrants from Eastern Europe, including Ukraine, fit organically into this logic. They did not perceive security as something given. For them, it was always a process, not a state.

Meir Amit (1963–1968): Kharkiv Roots and Systemic Transformation

Meir Amit (Hebrew: מאיר עמית, born Meir Haimovich Slutsky) led Mossad from 1963–1968, during a period when Israeli intelligence was transitioning from the stage of formation to the stage of institutional maturity. Although Amit was born in Israel, his parents came from Kharkiv — one of the largest Jewish intellectual centers in Eastern Europe.

Article in the Ukrainian Wikipedia – Meir Amit.

In English biographies, it is consistently mentioned that he was a cousin of the poet Boris Slutsky, and Slutsky himself grew up/was formed in Kharkiv (this is about the poet).

This background was reflected in his management style. Amit was opposed to improvisation for the sake of heroism. He insisted on analytics, data structuring, and strategic planning. It was under him that Mossad became not just a set of operations, but part of a unified architecture of national security.

During his leadership, intelligence played a key role in preparing for the Six-Day War. After leaving his post, Amit did not disappear from public life: he became a member of the Knesset, participated in economic and technological projects, including telecommunications and the defense industry. This highlights an important detail: for this generation, intelligence was not an isolated profession, but part of the general state thinking.

Yitzhak Hofi (1974–1982): Odessa Pragmatism in an Era of Crisis

Yitzhak Hofi (Hebrew: יצחק חופי, born Yitzhak Poberesky) led Mossad from 1974–1982 — one of the most challenging periods in Israel’s history. His leadership came after the Yom Kippur War, the rise of international terrorism, and the strengthening of threats beyond the Middle East.

Article in the Ukrainian Wikipedia – Іцхак Хофі.

Hofi was born in Mandatory Palestine, but his parents emigrated from Odessa. The Odessa Jewish environment always combined irony, caution, and harsh realism. This cultural code was reflected in his management style.

Hofi avoided publicity and believed that the best operation is the one that neither journalists nor politicians know about. Under him, Mossad significantly expanded its international agent networks and strengthened its ability to operate beyond the region, including in Europe and other continents.

Meir Dagan (2002–2011): Kherson, the Holocaust, and the Rejection of Illusions

The most famous figure with Ukrainian roots was Meir Dagan (born Huberman, in another transcription Huberman), who led Mossad from 2002–2011. He was born in Kherson in 1945 to a family that survived the Nazi occupation. (in some sources, 1947 is indicated; Odessa is also named as Dagan’s place of birth).

His grandfather was killed during the Holocaust, and this family tragedy became part of his worldview.

Article in the Ukrainian Wikipedia – Meir Dagan.

Dagan came to intelligence from the army, went through key Israeli wars, and formed a reputation as a person who does not believe in the “goodwill” of the enemy. In his office, a photograph of a deceased relative was kept for many years — not as a symbol of revenge, but as a reminder of the price of strategic mistakes.

Under Dagan, Mossad focused on preventive actions against strategic threats, including the nuclear programs of Israel’s adversaries. He consistently opposed the illusions of diplomatic appeasement and believed that intelligence must prevent threats before they become the subject of public discussions.

Behind the tough image was a person with unexpected interests. Dagan was fond of painting and sculpture, was a vegetarian, and valued unconventional thinking. This combination of internal reflection and strategic toughness made him one of the most controversial figures in the history of Israeli intelligence.

Common Denominator: Experience of Instability

What unites these people is not geography per se, but the experience of living in conditions of instability, characteristic of Jewish Ukraine. This experience formed several key principles that later became the foundation of Israeli intelligence culture:

absolute distrust of declarations without confirmation;
willingness to act in conditions of uncertainty;
understanding that the weakness of the state is always perceived as an invitation to aggression;
orientation towards long-term survival, not short-term political comfort.

Myths Around the “Ukrainian Trace”

In recent years, the topic of the Ukrainian roots of Mossad leaders is often used for propaganda purposes. This is a distortion of reality. Mossad has always been and remains an instrument of the Israeli state, subject to its laws and political leadership.

The Ukrainian roots of its leaders are part of the history of the Jewish diaspora, just like the Polish, Lithuanian, German, or Iraqi. Attempts to turn this fact into a political sensation only simplify the complex and tragic history of the 20th century.

Why This Matters Today

Against the backdrop of the ongoing war in Ukraine and the protracted conflict around Israel, the historical context takes on new significance. Ukrainian Jews are not a “bridge of influence” or a political tool. They are part of the common historical fabric, in which the destinies of Ukraine, Israel, and the Jewish people are intertwined.

Understanding this allows for a better view of the logic of Israeli security — a logic formed not by abstract doctrines, but by real experiences of loss, flight, and survival.

Instead of a Final Point

The history of Mossad is the history of specific people who brought not only professional skills but also personal memories of what happens when security is underestimated. The Ukrainian Jewish trace in this history is not a sensation and not an argument in political disputes.

It is a reminder that from Odessa, Kharkiv, and Kherson, the path sometimes led not only to emigration but also to the very heart of the system responsible for the survival of the state.

Category: “Jews from Ukraine” | NANews – news of Israel

“I survived the Holocaust and then under Russian bombs. The story is repeating itself. But Ukraine must survive.”

Russia follows in the footsteps of the Nazis, destroying Ukrainians just as Hitler destroyed the Jews.

“We thought this would not happen again. But Russia has proven that we were mistaken.”

Elvira Borts’ story was shared at the opening of the Exhibition “Ukrainian-Jewish Century: Photographs and Stories of 1920-1924” on January 27, 2025, at the National Historical and Memorial Reserve “Babi Yar,” opened in memory of the victims of the Holocaust.

The exhibition was attended by:

• Lyubov Borts – the widow of Elvira’s late brother.
• Inna Zakalok – Lyubov’s daughter.
• Mark Zakalok – Elvira’s grandson, a defender of Azovstal and former prisoner of war.

Elvira Borts did not survive until the opening of the exhibition, but her story became part of the exhibition.

“With the Germans, Elvira was briefly disguised so that it was not clear that she was Jewish. Then 39 people named Borts were shot in Mariupol.

During the Russian occupation, when passing through checkpoints, we were saved only by the fact that Elvira’s husband was a blockade survivor from Leningrad and, during the Soviet era, was an officer in the navy.

That’s why the Russians did not shoot us,” – Lyubov Borts, Elvira’s sister-in-law, recounts.

Together, they escaped from the besieged Mariupol in 2022. Lyubov attended the exhibition with her grandson Mark, who had been captured and recently freed. Elvira died last year in Kyiv, and her husband passed away even earlier.

A girl hiding from the Nazis, and an old woman fleeing from the Russians

Elvira Borts was born into a Jewish family in Mariupol. In 1941, when the city was occupied by the Nazis, most of her relatives were shot, and Elvira was hidden by another family in their basement.

“I saw how my neighbors were taken away, and no one else saw them again. I heard the cries of children who were scared. I lived in fear,” she recalled.

After 80 years, she had to hide yet again – this time from the Russian army.

On February 24, 2022, Russia launched a full-scale invasion. In the first days of the war, Mariupol was bombarded by aviation and artillery.

“We understood that the city could not endure. We heard explosions and saw how our houses crumbled,” Elvira remembered.

At the same time, her grandson Mark, a 19-year-old fighter in the National Guard, was defending Azovstal.

53 days of hell in besieged Mariupol

87-year-old Elvira Borts and her family found themselves trapped. Light, water, and communication were lost in the first days of the siege.

“Every day began in horror. You wake up, and you don’t know if you will live to see evening. People were dying from hunger, wounds, and fear,” she lamented.

At home, the food ran out. They melted snow to stockpile even a little something.

“We divided one portion of soup into three. We hoped at least something would get better. But it only got worse,” she said.

On March 17, Mark suddenly entered Elvira’s apartment. He was in a uniform stained with blood, but not his own.

“Mark brought us cookies. A huge box. He said, ‘Stock up; there won’t be any more.’”

This cookies were the only food for the next month.

“We had to make do with five pieces a day. This was our only way to survive,” she recalled.

Captivity and Elvira’s escape

On April 14, 2022, Elvira and her family managed to leave Mariupol.

“We drove through the checkpoints, and every second I thought, ‘Now they will shoot us,’” her daughter-in-law recalled.

Mark Zakalok – a 19-year-old fighter of the National Guard of Ukraine, who defended Azovstal during the siege of Mariupol.

From the outset of the invasion, his unit remained in the besieged city, managing to hold the defense of the plant for 82 days.

On March 17, he last saw his family when he broke into their home and brought them food.

“Stock up; there won’t be any more,” he told them before returning to Azovstal.

On May 17, the garrison received an order to cease resistance, after which the fighters were captured.

Mark and his unit surrendered when the garrison of Azovstal had no chance of defense.

“I thought I would never see him again. When he was taken, I prayed,” she said.

He was held captive for 172 days.

On November 3, he was exchanged and returned to Kyiv.

“When I saw him, I could not believe it was real. He looked exhausted, but he was alive. I hugged him just like I hugged my father in ’45 when he returned from the front,” she said.

The world has not learned its historical lessons once again

Elvira Borts did not live to see the end of the war.

She passed away in 2023 in Kyiv, never witnessing the liberation of her native Mariupol.

But her words will forever serve as a reminder:

“I survived the Holocaust and then under Russian bombs. The story is repeating itself. But Ukraine must survive.”

Russia follows in the footsteps of the Nazis, destroying Ukrainians just as Hitler destroyed the Jews.

“We thought this would not happen again. But Russia has proven that we were mistaken.”

Can the world stop the new genocide?

NAnews – Israeli news continues to tell the truth about Russia’s crimes.

The story will not forgive those who remain silent.

Previously, on May 2, 2022, Elvira shared her story with Radio Free Europe. Here it is – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2rsdoxxfmdy.

Lviv. Birth and Roots

Dmytro Bohdanovych Fialka was born on June 21, 1983, in Lviv. It was the city where everything began for him: football, first friends, the smell of the yard, and cold morning training sessions at the school stadium. He grew up in a family that valued hard work and knew the price of responsibility. And, as acquaintances later recalled, he was focused from childhood — never fussed, acted calmly and precisely.

When he was about fifteen, the family moved to Israel. Repatriation, a change of language, a different climate and culture — all of this was a challenge. But it was there, in Israel, that Fialka learned to overcome himself.

Israel. Service and Formation

After moving to Israel, Dmytro graduated from school and obtained citizenship. He served a three-year term in the Israel Defense Forces (IDF), in the “Nahal” brigades, and participated in combat operations against the “Hezbollah” group during the Second Lebanon War.

This chapter of his life became foundational. There, in the dusty valleys and hot positions, he understood what discipline was, what trust meant, and the responsibility for others. He later often told friends: “The army made me a man. I don’t regret a single day.”

The service ended, but the habit of acting, not talking, remained. And then football reappeared in his life.

Coach at “Maccabi Be’er Sheva”

From 2008 to 2013, Dmytro Fialka worked as a coach for the youth teams of the “Maccabi Be’er Sheva” club. In the official records of the Israel Football Association (IFA), he is listed as דימה פיאלקה (Dima Fialka).

He coached teenagers, led them to tournaments, and helped them find confidence on the field. One of his trainees was Or Dadia, who later became a player for the “Hapoel Be’er Sheva” club. In an interview, he said:

“Dima was my first coach. He could explain without shouting. After he left for Ukraine, we still corresponded. He was interested in how I was playing. I will never forget this.”

For Fialka, football was not just a job. It was a language he spoke with children. He demanded from them the same as he demanded from himself — precision, respect, and honesty.

Return to Lviv and New Life

In 2015, Dmytro returned to Ukraine. The reason was simple and human — a sick grandmother. He settled again in Lviv, where he started. He met Eva, got married, and became the father of two children — a daughter and a son.

In Lviv, he continued his coaching work: first at the “Dynamo Lviv” club, then at the DYUSSH FC “Lviv”, where he worked with teenagers. Before the war, he coached the youth team of Dynamo Lviv, as confirmed by publications in Israeli and Ukrainian media.

Colleagues recalled that Dmytro always came first and left last. During training, he repeated:

“If you want to be listened to — be an example.”

He lived modestly but with dignity. He loved children, his family, and football. And, as Israeli journalists later wrote about him, “he lived between two flags, but never betrayed either.”

War. Volunteer and Commander

When Russia launched a full-scale invasion in February 2022, Dmytro did not wait for a summons.

He volunteered for the Ukrainian Volunteer Corps “Right Sector”, where he helped select and train recruits. Later, he signed a contract with the Armed Forces of Ukraine and became a platoon commander in the International Legion of Territorial Defense of the UAF — a unit that included both Ukrainians and foreigners, among them veterans from Israel, Poland, the USA, and Canada.

His call sign was “Ship”.

He did not like to talk much about the war. In one of the messages to friends, he wrote:

“There are no strangers here. Everyone is your own if they are nearby.”

Fighters recalled that he knew how to maintain order, never lost composure, and never left his subordinates.

Death near Bakhmut

On September 1, 2022, Dmytro Fialka died near Bakhmut while performing a combat mission. According to official Ukrainian and Israeli media reports, he received a gunshot wound to the head.

Dmytro’s body remained in territory controlled by Russian forces. For six weeks, his family and volunteers fought for his return. On October 11, 2022, his remains were returned to Ukraine as part of a body exchange between Ukraine and Russia.

This news was covered by major Israeli and Ukrainian media. Times of Israel reported that “the body of the former Israeli soccer coach was returned to Ukraine after exchange negotiations.” Ynet clarified that this exchange was the result of significant diplomatic and humanitarian efforts.

Israeli Family and Burial Decision

In Israel, in Be’er Sheva, where Dmytro’s mother and younger brother lived, the news of his death caused deep shock. Relatives began a fundraising campaign — about 15,000 shekels to transport the body for burial in Israel.

But Dmytro’s family in Lviv decided otherwise. His wife Eva insisted that he should remain where he lived and for what he died — in Ukraine. This dilemma was painful for both sides, but the decision was made calmly, with respect. Israeli relatives returned the collected funds to donors, calling it “a tribute of memory and love without borders.”

There was no conflict in this story. There was only pain, shared between two countries.

Funeral in Lviv

On October 21, 2022, Dmytro Fialka was buried in the Jewish section of Yaniv Cemetery in Lviv. The ceremony was attended by representatives of the Jewish community, Israeli diplomats, volunteers, and his former students.

Two flags — Ukrainian and Israeli — stood side by side. Not as a symbol of division, but as a sign that one person can be a home for two nations at once.

Radio Liberty wrote that words about his courage and modesty were spoken at the funeral. He was not a politician, did not strive to be a hero. He simply did what he considered right.

Memory and Recognition

After Dmytro’s death, his name appeared in the memorial lists of the International Legion of the UAF. In Israel and Ukraine, dozens of publications were written about him — from sports portals to major publications.

The Israel Football Federation confirmed his status as a former coach of the “Maccabi Be’er Sheva” club. On social media, Israeli players and coaches posted photos with the caption “Dima Fialka – forever coach.” In Lviv, he is remembered as a teacher who could speak to children so that they listened not out of fear, but out of respect.

A Man Between Flags

Dmytro Fialka lived a life that cannot be measured in kilometers. He was born in Ukraine, grew up in Israel, returned to Ukraine, and died defending it.

Israeli media wrote about him warmly. Israel Hayom called him “a soldier of two homelands,” Ynet — “a coach remembered by everyone who learned from him to be strong.” Ukrainian sources — “a man who understood that freedom knows no borders.”

He did not leave behind loud speeches — only an example. And this example is worth more than any awards.

Moral and Conclusion

The story of Dmytro Fialka is not about death. It is about the choice a person makes when they cannot do otherwise. About the fact that true belonging to a country is not a passport, but an action.

He was a Jew, a Ukrainian, an Israeli. He was a father, a husband, a coach, a soldier. And he became a person who proved: loyalty is not geography, but an inner truth.

When we see two flags side by side — Israeli and Ukrainian — we should remember that sometimes one person can connect them more strongly than dozens of diplomatic agreements. Such a person lived. His name was Dmytro Fialka.

Moral: Memory That Unites Two Nations

There are dozens, hundreds of such destinies. People whose lives passed between Israel and Ukraine, between two homelands, between two worlds that seemed distant until pain brought them closer.

These are stories of Israelis of Ukrainian origin, IDF veterans, volunteers, doctors, IT specialists, and ordinary citizens who stood alongside Ukrainians during the war. And each of them, like Dmytro Fialka, carries a part of a common code — human and honest.

When society remembers such people, it becomes stronger. Memory is not just an archive. It is a mirror of conscience. It reminds us that the true connection between countries is born not in offices, but in the actions of those who do not seek profit, who simply do what they consider right.

Dmytro Fialka showed that patriotism can be dual, but loyalty is one. He lived at the intersection of cultures, spoke two languages, prayed in different words, but in his heart had one principle: life is worth living with honor.

Society — both Ukrainian and Israeli — is obliged to remember such people. They become a bridge between nations that too often share pain. And it is thanks to such stories that we see that heroism is not about war, but about humanity.

Main Sources:

• Ynet — גופת מאמן הכדורגל הישראלי שנהרג בקרבות הוחזרה לאוקראינה
• Times of Israel — Body of former Israeli soccer coach killed in Ukraine returned in prisoner swap
• Israel Hayom — הישראלי שנהרג באוקראינה הובא למנוחות בלבוב
• Bhol — גופת ישראלי שנהרג באוקראינה הוחזרה לישראל במסגרת חילופי גופות
• KAN News — אזרח ישראלי נהרג בלחימה באוקראינה
• Walla News — גופת האזרח הישראלי שנהרג באוקראינה הוחזרה לישראל
• Radio Liberty — Dmytro Fialka, killed near Bakhmut
• Ukrinform — A Ukrainian who served in Israel died
• ZAXID.NET — Dmytro Fialka, who died at the front, was buried in Lviv
• Wikipedia (ukr.) — Fialka Dmytro Bohdanovych
• Israel Football Association (IFA) — registry of coaches of the Maccabi Be’er Sheva club

This is a story about pop hits that have survived dozens of playlists and still work in the hall. And yes, the context of recent years is important here: part of the audience comes not only for nostalgia.

Tour poster: dates, cities, venues

Haifa — April 30, 2026

Thursday, 20:00
Kiryat Haim, Teatron HaTzafon, Beilinson St. 41

Prices: 336–756 ₪

Tel Aviv — May 2, 2026

Saturday, 20:00
Tel Aviv University, Smolarz Auditorium, Dr. George Weiss St. (Gate 4)

Prices: 356–856 ₪

Ashdod — May 4, 2026

Monday, 20:00
Performing Arts Center, Derech HaAretz St. 1

Prices: 336–756 ₪

Tickets – https://showman.co.il/e/vera-brejneva-2026/

How the evening goes

Doors open: 19:00

Concert starts: 20:00

Duration: about 100 minutes

Format: live sound

Age rules: guests under 14 years old — only accompanied by adults.

A household detail is noted separately, but it is important in Israel: it’s better not to count on “just in time.” The evening starts on schedule, and the entrance flow in large halls can be dense.

“Love Will Save the World”: what will be on stage and why it works

The golden period of “VIA Gra” — without unnecessary explanations

Vera Brezhneva is the soloist of the golden lineup of the group “VIA Gra.” It sounds like a line from a press release, but the meaning is clear: it’s about songs that have become a “point in time” for many.

You don’t have to be a fan to remember the choruses. The hall usually does the rest.

Solo hits — the case when “recognized from the first chords”

The program includes the most famous solo compositions. Organizers describe the concert as an evening about feelings, closeness, and what seems simple until it becomes difficult.

In the feeling of such a format, it’s not about “the perfect show for the sake of the show.” Rather about contact. The singer holds the hall not only with music but also with how she talks between songs — calmly, without demonstrative distance.

Live sound and the effect of a “personal meeting”

The phrase “every concert is a sincere conversation with the audience” usually looks like advertising. But for Brezhneva, this thesis has long been embedded in the image: soft presentation, understandable songs, human intonation.

And here one detail is appropriate, important specifically for our audience: NANovosti — News of Israel | Nikk.Agency places this poster not just as weekend entertainment. For many Israelis with Ukrainian experience, such concerts are also a way to keep themselves in normalcy when the news constantly pulls back into war.

Incredible but true: sometimes people really need an evening that is based on a simple idea — only love can save this world.

After 2022: helping Ukraine and transitioning to Ukrainian songs

Volunteering, humanitarian work, charitable projects

After February 24, 2022, Vera Brezhneva publicly took an anti-war position and spoke of the war as a tragedy for Ukraine and civilians.

Then there were concrete actions: volunteer work at humanitarian warehouses in Europe, participation in aid collection, connecting the audience to charitable initiatives.

In her public line in recent years, the same framework regularly sounds: to help not “in theory,” but through understandable, proven mechanisms — money, logistics, partnerships, targeted support.

Another important thing: this position is perceived as a direct conflict with the Kremlin’s policy and Putin’s course. Even when the surname is not mentioned in every message — the meaning is transparent.

What changes in the perception of the concert in Israel

For Israel, this topic is not abstract.

In the halls of Haifa, Tel Aviv, Ashdod, people with different experiences often sit next to each other: some arrived long ago, some after 2022, some just grew up on these songs and want an evening without heaviness.

And yet the background is present. It is not necessarily spoken from the stage, but it affects how the hall reacts, how they listen, how they applaud after a pause.

Ukrainian language turn: examples usually named first

After 2022, Brezhneva’s Ukrainian language line noticeably strengthened — not as a one-time “demonstration of position,” but as a stable layer in releases and public image.

What is most often cited as an example:

“Vyshyvanka” (duet with TAYANNA, 2022)
The track was released as a Ukrainian language release and in Ukrainian/lifestyle media was described as work with a strong identity framework (“nation code,” etc.).

“Taki my lyudy” (2023)
A Ukrainian language composition, around which the media separately quoted her words about internal changes and a new stage.

Mini-album “Dyakuyu” (2023)
The release of the release is recorded on streaming platforms (as an EP).

It is important that this is not “one song for the sake of it”: from interviews and release logic, it is clear that the Ukrainian language direction has become stable — part of how she now positions herself.

There are other Ukrainian language works — their meaning is usually one: the language becomes part of personal and political reality, not just a market issue.

About Vera Brezhneva

Vera Brezhneva (real name — Vera Viktorovna Galushka) was born on February 3, 1982 in Dniprodzerzhynsk (now Kamianske, Dnipropetrovsk region, Ukraine). By nationality — Ukrainian, citizen of Ukraine.

She received her education at the Dnipro National University of Railway Transport. Her musical career began in the early 2000s, and in 2003 she joined the group “VIA Gra”, where she performed until 2007. This period is considered the time of the “golden lineup” of the group.

Since 2007, Vera has been developing a solo career. She works in the pop music genre, performing as a singer, actress, and TV presenter. The main instrument is vocals. Over the years, she has collaborated with Konstantin Meladze, Potap, Dan Balan, DJ Smash, Artur Pirozhkov, Monatik, and other artists.

In the professional environment, she is known by the stage names Vera Brezhneva and VIRA. After 2022, she began to actively use the Ukrainian language creative format.

She has been awarded state honors of Ukraine, including the Order of Princess Olga III degree.

Over the years, she has been married to Mikhail Kiperman and Konstantin Meladze.

How to buy tickets

Tickets – https://showman.co.il/e/vera-brejneva-2026/

Author: Stas Shifer
On October 27, the publication JewishNews reported on the Jewish part of the project. But the exhibition is not limited to Jewish history: it also features German, Mennonite, and Swedish communities. It is about people who have lived for generations in Ukrainian cities and villages, building schools, temples, workshops, and farms. Today, some of these places are close to the front or on occupied territory.

The project “Virtual Museum: Heritage of Ethnic Communities of Frontline Regions” was organized by the charitable foundation “Society for Development” with the participation of the Council of Germans of Ukraine and the German Nordost-Institut (IKGN e.V.). It is supported by the Ukrainian Cultural Foundation. The exhibition materials are prepared in Ukrainian, German, and English.

What monuments are shown in Kyiv

Among the exhibits are the estate of the Bergman family in the village of Solyone, Dnipropetrovsk region, where the local history museum is now located, photographs of a Catholic church, a Lutheran church, the building of the former “Grand Hotel,” and Yakovlev’s printing house in Dnipro. There are also old Mennonite tombstones. Mennonites are a Christian movement whose members created agricultural settlements in the Black Sea region. Therefore, the organizers highlight them alongside ethnic communities.

Photographs were collected by historians, local historians, and volunteers. The preparation used research by scientists from the Dnipro National University named after Oles Honchar; among the partners mentioned is “Wikimedia Ukraine.” The organizers want to place archival materials, historical references, and virtual tours in an open internet museum. The full list of its future Jewish exhibits has not yet been published. At the opening, sample copies of a calendar with monuments for 2027 were shown. In the application of the Ukrainian Cultural Foundation, the total budget of the project is 1,185,470 hryvnias; this is the declared amount, not confirmed expenses.

What Jewish communities of Ukraine have already lost

In February 2026, the United Jewish Community of Ukraine published a separate monitoring of about 40 damaged or destroyed objects. These are synagogues, educational and charitable institutions, cemeteries, monuments to Holocaust victims. The data covers four years of war, but not all areas are accessible for inspection. This list cannot be issued as a catalog of HERITAGE:FRONT: the organizers did not claim that all the listed places are presented on the stands.

Among the recorded cases is the destruction of a small synagogue in Mariupol in the spring of 2022 and serious damage to the CHABAD building that operated there. In the same March, shelling damaged the “Menorah” in Drobytsky Yar near Kharkiv. This is a place of mass shootings of Jews by the Nazis during World War II; it should not be confused with Babyn Yar in Kyiv. In January 2023, the 19th-century choral synagogue in Bakhmut was damaged.

Later, strikes also affected burial sites. On November 28, 2025, about 240 graves were damaged in the Jewish section of cemetery No. 3 in Kharkiv. On January 15, 2026, in Belopole, Sumy region, a monument to Holocaust victims installed in 2021 was destroyed; the building of the former ghetto was also damaged. The mere fact of damage to a Jewish object does not allow concluding without additional evidence that the strike was made specifically because of its religious significance.

NANews Israel News Nikk.Agency compared the community list with the general statistics of destruction. By the end of September 2026, the Ministry of Culture of Ukraine counted 2,161 damaged cultural heritage monuments and 2,665 cultural institutions. UNESCO confirmed the damage to 563 cultural objects by September 29, of which 165 are religious buildings. The difference is explained by accounting and verification methods, not a separate category of Jewish losses.

What is important here for families in Israel

In the Zaporizhzhia region, in the southeast of Ukraine, there was the Novo-Zlatopol Jewish National District. It was created in 1929 from settlements founded in the 19th and early 20th centuries. “National district” then meant a Soviet administrative unit with a large share of the Jewish population, not an independent autonomy. According to community monitoring, there are several synagogues and more than ten cemeteries there. The fighting was so close that the front line sometimes crossed the territory of the Jewish cemetery in the former colony of Bohodarivka.

In Kherson region, Jewish agricultural colonies appeared as early as the early 19th century. The first seven were founded in 1806, including Bobrovyi Kut and Seidemenuha. After the liberation of the right bank of the Dnipro in 2022, researchers planned to inspect the cemeteries of the former Jewish colonies Bobrovyi Kut, Mala and Velyka Seidemenuha. The expedition had to be revised: local residents warned of mines and unexploded shells. It is impossible to assess the losses without safe access.

For Israelis whose families come from these places, the name of the village or a preserved tombstone inscription sometimes gives more than a general map of destruction. A native of Ukrainian Volochysk Mordechai Shenhavi was at the origins of the creation of the “Yad Vashem” memorial in Jerusalem. NANews also reported on the Soviet authorities’ ban on the Babyn Yar memorial project in 1965: then censorship hindered the preservation of memory, today documents and monuments are not always accessible due to the war.

HERITAGE is open at the Museum of the History of Kyiv on Bohdan Khmelnytsky Street, 7, until November 1, 2026. The virtual archive is designed for those who cannot come to Ukraine, including descendants of residents of disappeared communities. The organizers have not yet named the launch date of the full public version.

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On October 28, 2026, the container ship CONTSHIP JET, en route from Haifa, Israel to Constanta, Romania, was attacked by three sea drones near Cape Kaliakra, Bulgaria. The ship sustained serious damage, and all 18 crew members were rescued. More than twenty containers, including those with hazardous substances, ended up in the Black Sea. The attack was confirmed by Bulgarian Defense Minister Dimitar Stoyanov.

The container ship sailed under the Liberian flag, belonged to a Greek shipping structure, but operated on the Israeli ZIM line. Its last cargo operations before the attack were in Ashdod and Haifa. The strike occurred after a series of October attacks on commercial ships near Bulgaria and Romania, which resulted in casualties and missing sailors. Ukraine accuses Russia, but Moscow denies involvement. The perpetrator of the attack on CONTSHIP JET has not yet been officially identified.

Three sea drones: how the container ship was attacked and the crew rescued

According to the Bulgarian Ministry of Transport, at 12:01, rescue services received a signal through the Constanta maritime coordination center. At 12:13, the crew abandoned the ship. The attack site was approximately 16–17 nautical miles east of Cape Kaliakra. The Defense Minister indicated another landmark — 21 nautical miles southeast of Shabla, located on the same stretch of coast.

Three Bulgarian Navy ships, a border police vessel, aviation, and the Maritime Administration were dispatched to the container ship. Bulgarian media also reported assistance from a nearby tanker.

Among the rescued were four Ukrainians

By 12:53, eight sailors were already on a military boat, while the remaining ten awaited rescue in a lifeboat. All were taken to safety, with reception organized in Varna involving border guards and medics. Transport Minister Georgi Peev thanked the rescuers.

According to Reuters and a representative of the shipowner, the crew consisted of 14 Filipino citizens and four Ukrainians. The Greek management company Contships Management confirmed the rescue of all eighteen people.

Fire, hull damage, and dangerous containers in the sea

Fishermen and eyewitnesses reported a fire and a severe list to the starboard side. Reuters confirmed reports of serious damage. Initial reports suggested flooding, but later Bulgarian media wrote that the container ship remained afloat and was drifting. There is no confirmation of its final demise, and the results of the hull inspection have not been published.

According to Maritime.bg, more than twenty containers ended up overboard. The warning to mariners mentions flammable gases, non-flammable non-toxic gases, flammable liquids, and other hazardous substances. Floating containers pose a threat to passing ships, and damage to packaging could cause a fire or water pollution. There is no confirmation of a chemical leak yet. It is also unknown how much fuel remains in the tanks of the damaged ship.

Why report 421 containers and 700 TEU

The Bulgarian Ministry of Transport, citing the crew, named 421 containers. The management company reported about 700 TEU. There may be no contradiction here: TEU is a unit of capacity equal to a standard twenty-foot container, while a forty-foot container is counted as two TEU.

CONTSHIP JET was built in 2007, its length is 159.8 meters, width — 24.8 meters, capacity — 1267 TEU. The ship’s international registration number is IMO 9348625.

How the container ship is connected to Israeli ZIM

CONTSHIP JET is registered under the Liberian flag. In ship databases, the owner is listed as Greek Sevilla Maritime, and it is operated by Contships Management from Athens. Israeli ZIM chartered the ship for the Levant – Black Sea Express (LBX) commercial line. This is confirmed by data from Flexport Atlas, ShipsGo, and the carrier’s schedules, where the ship is designated with the code CJ5.

Chartering means that the company organizes cargo voyages on the ship, not necessarily owning it. Therefore, CONTSHIP JET cannot be called Israeli by registration, although its participation in the ZIM transport network is confirmed.

ShipsGo recorded the ship’s cargo operations in Ashdod on October 22 and Haifa on October 24. Over the previous six months, about 67% of the containers in this system’s tracked sample were for ZIM shipments. This figure does not describe the exact cargo composition during the attack: the full voyage manifest has not been published.

Why the Haifa – Constanta route is important for Israel and Ukraine

The LBX line connects Ashdod and Haifa with Turkish ports, Bulgarian Varna, and Romanian Constanta. Such regional shipments are carried out by relatively small container ships delivering cargo between ports and major international routes.

From the Mediterranean Sea, ships pass through the Dardanelles, the Sea of Marmara, and the Bosphorus. The regime of the straits is regulated by the Montreux Convention of 1936, which establishes different rules for commercial and military ships. NAnews previously explained, whether Turkey can close the Bosphorus and what restrictions apply during wartime. A general closure of the straits for civilian trade has not been announced by Ankara. CONTSHIP JET was attacked after passing through them.

Constanta is an important transport hub for Ukraine. Through the Romanian port, rail, road, and Danube routes, cargo related to Ukrainian foreign trade passes. In June 2026, NAnews reported on supplies of Israeli diesel fuel from Haifa to Ukraine, in which Constanta was used in logistics. However, there is no data on the transportation of fuel or military products on CONTSHIP JET.

October series of attacks on civilian shipping

The attack on October 28 continued a series of incidents near Bulgaria and Romania. On October 5, ROYAD MAMMADOV was sunk in the Romanian exclusive economic zone, on October 6, ALFA WATAN was damaged near Bulgaria, and during the same period — ABLE. On October 13, HS DIGNITY and CHELSEA-3 were attacked, on October 14 — YARA J, on October 15 — WINE TRADER, on October 23 — KHORYV.

On HS DIGNITY, eleven sailors went missing after the attack. On KHORYV, there was one reported dead and three missing. Reuters estimated the possible human losses of previous attacks at about two dozen people, including those missing. This is not a confirmed final death toll.

Why commercial ships find it difficult to defend against sea drones

A sea drone is a small unmanned boat with an engine, navigation, observation equipment, and, in combat versions, explosives. Some devices are controlled at a significant distance via satellite communication. A small target is difficult to detect among the waves, especially at night. Commercial ships usually do not have the protection of military ships.

Ukraine uses such drones against the Russian fleet and military targets. NAnews has already explored, how Ukrainian sea drones attacked Russian ships and changed the situation in the Azov and Black Seas.

But the presence of such weapons in Ukraine does not establish its involvement in attacks on civilian ships. To determine the perpetrator, debris from the devices, observation data, information about routes, launch sites, and control systems are needed.

Who benefits from the attack: the Russian version and Europe’s position

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky already on October 7 blamed Russia for previous attacks. Moscow rejected the accusations, and the Russian ambassador to Bulgaria, Eleonora Mitrofanova, suggested a provocation by a third party. Bulgarian Prime Minister Rumen Radev noted the possible benefit for Russia while acknowledging the lack of evidence for a definitive establishment of the guilty.

Russia has been at war with Ukraine since 2014, and on February 24, 2022, launched a full-scale invasion. The Russian army has repeatedly struck Ukrainian ports, grain terminals, warehouses, and transport infrastructure.

Continuing attacks on commercial routes can serve Russian interests for several reasons. Insurance costs and transportation costs increase, Ukrainian exports become more complicated, and shipowners are forced to change routes or stop voyages. At the same time, pressure is created on Bulgaria, Romania, and other European partners of Kyiv.

The proximity of attacks to NATO states forces allies to spend resources on surveillance, anti-drone defense, and shipping protection. The uncertainty of the origin of the devices complicates the adoption of retaliatory decisions. However, such a situation can also have reverse consequences for Moscow — strengthening NATO’s military presence.

It cannot yet be claimed that Russia sent three drones against CONTSHIP JET. There is also no evidence that the organizers specifically chose the ship because of ZIM or Israeli cargo. For Ukraine, which depends on Black Sea trade, such attacks also create economic and diplomatic problems. Assumptions about the benefit to any side do not replace an investigation.

What the European Council and European Parliament stated

On October 16, the European Council condemned attacks on commercial ships in the economic zones of Bulgaria and Romania as a violation of international maritime law. On October 20, the head of European diplomacy spoke about the escalation of Russian strikes on shipping.

On October 22, the European Parliament adopted a resolution holding Russia responsible for previous attacks on civilian ships. It was supported by 432 deputies, opposed by 52, and 88 abstained. The document also calls for considering a European naval operation to protect shipping.

The resolution was adopted six days before the attack on CONTSHIP JET. Therefore, it reflects the European assessment of the preceding series of incidents, not the results of the investigation of the October 28 attack.

Bulgaria, Turkey, NATO: why the attack concerns Israel

On the day of the attack, a meeting of the defense ministers of Bulgaria, Romania, and Turkey — Dimitar Stoyanov, Ștefan-Radu Oprea, and Yaşar Güler — was held in Sofia. They discussed the security of civilian shipping, drone detection, and joint actions in the Black Sea.

The ministers condemned the attacks and agreed to develop trilateral coordination, exchange information, and improve early warning. Güler warned Russia and Ukraine about the inadmissibility of attacks on commercial ships; Ankara also allowed for legal measures. As early as October 16, Bulgaria requested additional combat aircraft and anti-drone systems from NATO. This does not mean that all requested forces have already been deployed.

Why an attack near a NATO country does not automatically mean the alliance enters the war

CONTSHIP JET was outside the 12-mile territorial sea of Bulgaria, in its exclusive economic zone. There, the state has certain rights to resources and economic activities, but the waters themselves are not equated to its sovereign territory.

Therefore, an attack on a foreign container ship in this zone does not automatically trigger NATO’s Article 5 on collective defense. Such a decision requires separate legal and political assessments by allies. Meanwhile, NATO and the EU can enhance patrolling, surveillance, intelligence sharing, and escorting commercial ships.

For Israel, the risk is primarily economic. Foreign trade depends on maritime transport, port schedules, insurance, and delivery costs. NAnews has already explained, how the Black Sea war affects flour and bread prices in Israel. Now an armed attack has directly affected the ZIM container line.

As of October 28, there is no confirmed data on changes in ZIM schedules, tariff increases, or cessation of voyages to Constanta. The recipients of the lost cargo and the extent of the damage to Israeli clients have not been established. The further fate of the container ship depends on the condition of the hull, hazardous cargo, and the possibility of safe towing. The origin of the sea drones that attacked it remains under investigation.

Author: Pavel Shveiko

“Help Ukraine be heard on the international stage in Israel” — with this wording, Israeli Friends of Ukraine started fundraising for the Ukrainian exhibition at the International Photography Festival PHOTO IS:RAEL. According to the project organizers, for the first time, a group of Ukrainian photographers currently living in Israel has been invited. Some participants arrived here after the start of the full-scale Russian invasion.

The exhibition is expected to run all festival days — from November 11 to 21, 2026. The organizers of the Ukrainian project hope that during this time, the photographs will be seen by about 50,000 people: the Israeli public, foreign guests, representatives of cultural, public, and diplomatic organizations. PHOTO IS:RAEL does not promise a specific 50,000 visitors but speaks of “tens of thousands” annually, so the first figure should be seen as an estimate by Israeli Friends of Ukraine.

This project has another feature. Ukrainian works will not be part of a specialized diaspora event, where mainly people already interested in Ukraine would come, but in the general program of a major Israeli festival. For NAnovosti — News of Israel | Nikk.Agency, this is where the main plot lies: the Ukrainian theme reaches an audience that might not have planned to specifically look for an exhibition about Ukraine.

PHOTO IS:RAEL 2026: 50 exhibitions and more than 200 photographers

The 13th International Photography Festival PHOTO IS:RAEL will be held this year at the Tel Aviv Cinematheque complex, HaArba’a St, 5. PHOTO IS:RAEL announces about 50 open exhibitions and works by more than 200 photographers from Israel and other countries. In addition to exhibitions, there will be films, tours, meetings with authors, and family events. The festival space itself is open for free; only some special events and tours are separately charged.

On November 11, the opening day, the festival will operate from 20:00 to 22:00. From Sunday to Thursday, the hours are 10:00–22:00, on Friday — 10:00–16:00, on Saturday — again until 22:00. It can be reached, among other ways, via the Carlebach red line light rail station; the Tel Aviv HaShalom railway station is also relatively nearby. For the Israeli reader, this is a useful detail: it is essentially in the center of Tel Aviv, not a closed exhibition venue on the periphery.

The theme of the current festival is Citizens / אזרחים / “Citizens”. PHOTO IS:RAEL interprets it more broadly than the formal entry in the teudat-zehut: who gets the opportunity to be noticed, whose voice is present in society, and how much a person can participate in shaping the common reality. Therefore, the Ukrainian exhibition fits the theme quite naturally — the authors, some of whom have changed their country of residence due to the war, talk about their own experiences already within Israeli society.

From HaTachana to the Cinematheque: how the festival appeared

The history of PHOTO IS:RAEL began long before the current Ukrainian initiative. The first International Photography Festival was held back in 2009 at the HaTachana complex in Tel Aviv under the theme Point of View. The creation of the first festival is associated with photographers Eyal Landesman and Eldad Rafaeli; Rafaeli then was responsible for its artistic direction for several years. The current organization PHOTO IS:RAEL has existed since 2012 as חברה לתועלת הציבור, or חל״צ for short — an Israeli public benefit company operating without the aim of distributing profits.

The official retrospective shows how the venues and themes have changed. In 2010, the “Short Exposure” project took place in the Tel Aviv port, in 2012, the “Sustainability” festival was hosted in the Jaffa port, in 2014, “Photographic Memory” was held at the Carmel Winery in Rishon LeZion. Then there were “Safe Space” in Jaffa in 2016, “Identity” in Midtown in 2017, “Relations” in 2018, “Fantasy” in Azrieli Sarona in 2019, and “Transformation” at Kikar HaMedina in 2020.

In 2021, the festival had the theme “Meeting Point”, in 2022 — “Action”. The edition initially planned for November 2023 was postponed to March–April 2024 due to circumstances and took place without a general theme. In 2025, the 12th festival was called Voices — “Voices”, with Svetlana Reingold as the chief curator. Now the next step is Citizens. In this sequence, it is quite clear where the institution itself has been moving in recent years: photography here is increasingly used not only as an artistic object but also as a way to talk about community, identity, and the possibility of being heard.

Currently, Eyal Landesman is listed as the co-founder and director of PHOTO IS:RAEL, Zion Bahlul heads the board of directors, Svetlana Reingold works as the chief curator. Co-founder Yitzhak Goren is on the board of directors; Itai Bar-Yosef is responsible for development and partnerships, Netta Graf for social programs. Thus, the festival is backed by a permanent organization with year-round activities, not a temporary team assembled for a single November project.

PHOTO IS:RAEL calls itself an independent structure and writes that it does not receive permanent support from government or public bodies. However, in the open state register, there is, for example, a separate agreement of the Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs with the organization for 13,000 ₪ in 2018, related to the international component of the Identity festival. This is not the same as permanent budget funding, but an important clarification on how its work is organized: individual projects could receive support from government structures.

Here, they have long given the camera to those who are usually photographed by others

One of the central programs of the organization is called PHOTO IS:VOICE. It is based on the photovoice methodology: the participant is not turned into the object of someone else’s report but is taught to shoot their own life and determine what exactly they want to show to others. For a reader unfamiliar with the term, the meaning is quite simple — a person from the community becomes the author of the story about themselves, not just the subject of a photographer from the outside.

PHOTO IS:RAEL reports that since 2015, more than 10,000 children and adults from over 250 communities in Israel have participated in its social projects. Their works are exhibited at the same International Festival alongside professional photography. The organization directly explains this as an attempt to break the usual hierarchy between those who are shown and those who usually decide how exactly they are shown.

For the Ukrainian group, this story is directly relevant. Here, newcomers from Ukraine do not become an illustration for someone else’s story about refugees or war. The photographers act as authors and choose themselves which images to present to the Israeli audience.

Ukraine at PHOTO IS:RAEL is not appearing for the first time

A careful wording is needed here. The words of Israeli Friends of Ukraine about a “first invited group” do not mean that until 2026 there were no Ukraine or Ukrainian authors at the festival at all.

In 2018, among the 29 winners of the festival’s international Open Call were Kristina Bilyak and Sergey Melnichenko from Ukraine. At that time, PHOTO IS:RAEL received more than 900 portfolios from 52 countries, and the selected projects were shown within the festival theme Relations.

In 2022, Victoria Sorochinski represented Ukraine among the twenty finalists of the Meitar Award for Excellence in Photography — an award by PHOTO IS:RAEL and the Zvi and Ofra Meitar Family Fund. Her project was called POLTAVALAND: Ukraine’s Place of Power, and in another festival event, Sorochinski was already designated as a photographer Ukraine/Israel. This is a particularly close precedent to the current story: Ukrainian biography and Israeli presence intersected on this platform four years ago.

At the same time, the project Ukraine Runs Through It by Justyna Mielnikiewicz was shown. The photographer worked in Ukraine for many years, using the Dnieper as a line through which she told about the history, geography, and differences of the country’s regions. After the full-scale Russian invasion in 2022, this long-term project acquired a completely different context — the river became, among other things, a line of war and defense. The exhibition was held in cooperation with the Polish Adam Mickiewicz Institute.

Another project from 2022 is In Their Own Words by Israeli photographer Michal Chelbin. In March, after the invasion began, she went to Poland and photographed Ukrainian refugees and Polish families who hosted them. The festival held a separate meeting with Chelbin and journalist Shani Litman about this exhibition.

Later, PHOTO IS:RAEL showed Finding Safe Space by the international Israeli humanitarian organization IsraAID. For the Israeli reader, the name is familiar, but the context here is significant: the project told about IsraAID’s work with Ukrainian women and children at the border after the invasion began, as well as programs within Ukraine — from water supply to medical and psychological assistance.

Therefore, the current “first time” is better understood narrowly and precisely: according to Israeli Friends of Ukraine, for the first time, a separate group of Ukrainian photographers currently living in Israel has been invited to PHOTO IS:RAEL. As of October 1, there is no separate card for this exhibition with a full list of authors on the festival’s website yet. The names of the participants, curator, final name of the exhibition, number of works, and configuration of the stand have not yet been publicly disclosed.

This is not the only Ukrainian cultural project in Israel

The current exhibition does not appear out of nowhere. In March, NAnovosti detailed the project “This (Not) My War” in Bat Yam, which brought together 15 Israeli artists born in Ukraine. It was backed by “Platform 202”, created to support Ukrainian authors in Israel; the curators were Vera Gailis and Svetlana Matvienko.

There was a similar process: the Ukrainian theme ceased to exist only within the Ukrainian community and entered the regular cultural space of Israel. That is why the current participation in PHOTO IS:RAEL is logical to view not as a separate action but alongside already emerging projects.

On October 16–17, another exhibition will be held in Tel Aviv, which we wrote about — “Threads of Identity” by Yana Dereza. Modern Ukrainian motankas are used there to talk about memory, relocation, and identity; the project is also held in cooperation with Israeli Friends of Ukraine.

Painting, traditional form, photography — the projects are different. What becomes common is something else: the conversation with the Israeli audience is already happening not only through political statements, rallies, or news from the front.

Who is raising 10,000 shekels

Israeli Friends of Ukraine has been operating in Israel since 2014. The co-founder and head of the organization is Anna Zharova, the co-founder and head of operational activities is Vyacheslav Feldman. IFU is engaged in humanitarian, public, and cultural projects related to Ukraine and Ukrainian-Israeli relations.

According to its published statistics, IFU has sent 157 tons of humanitarian aid, raised about 2 million shekels for the needs of Ukrainians, held 39 protest and charity events after the start of the full-scale war, and provided Ukrainian servicemen with 18,500 Israeli bandages and tourniquets. The organization’s website also includes projects of assistance within Israel after October 7, including Salute IDF and volunteer work in the south of the country.

In the case of PHOTO IS:RAEL, IFU emphasizes: the main part of the expenses is already covered by the organization, and 10,000 ₪ is the missing amount. So it is incorrect to write that the entire Ukrainian exhibition “costs ten thousand shekels”.

The exhibition production itself indeed requires significant funds. To understand the scale, one can take the official example of last year’s festival: in 2025, PHOTO IS:RAEL offered participants a separate structure measuring 3.6 by 2.4 meters with design, printing, texts, and curatorial support for 4,650 ₪. This is the rate of another project and another year, so it cannot be transferred to the Ukrainian exhibition, but it shows what the expenses for such participation generally consist of.

How to support the exhibition

The collection is conducted through Grow. The designation is “Exhibition / תערוכה”, the amount is chosen by the person independently. The organizers promise to place the names of all donors who wish to be publicly mentioned in a separate block of thanks directly on the exhibition stand.

Donation link

There is just over a month left until the opening. During this time, the full program of PHOTO IS:RAEL 2026 should appear, including the names of Ukrainian participants and details of the exhibition itself. Then it will become clearer what stories they will bring to HaArba’a, 5, and how the exhibition will be structured.

The basic structure of the project is known so far: 11 days in the center of Tel Aviv, an international photographic festival, a separate group of Ukrainian authors from Israel, and the missing 10,000 shekels to complete the exhibition. In this form, the story is quite specific and without additional slogans: Ukrainian photographers are offered a professional Israeli platform, and the collection is needed to take advantage of this invitation.

Today, Natan Sharansky remains a good friend of Ukrainians at the level of diplomatic relations between Ukraine and Israel. His clear stance on international support for Ukraine after the start of the large-scale Russian invasion became a call for the Israeli government to decisively condemn the attack on Ukraine. Natan Sharansky firmly emphasized that Israel must unwaveringly stand on the side of the Ukrainians.

Natan (Anatoly) Sharansky (b. 1948) is one of the most prominent human rights activists, a well-known Israeli political figure of Ukrainian-Jewish origin.

In addition, he actively participated in the Jewish movement in the USSR, demonstrations, and protests. In 1977, Natan Sharansky was arrested for anti-Soviet agitation, and the following year he was sentenced to 13 years in prison on charges of espionage for the USA.

Only thanks to numerous petitions from influential world politicians and demonstrations in 1986, through an agreement between the USSR and the USA, Natan Sharansky was freed from the repressive grip: he was exchanged for one of the Soviet spies arrested in the West. Immediately after the exchange, Natan was honorably received by Israeli Prime Minister Shimon Peres and his deputy Yitzhak Shamir.

In the same year, Sharansky founded the public organization “Zionist Forum,” which aimed to unite repatriates from the Soviet Union, and already in 1995, he started the political party “Israel for Aliyah.” In Israel, Natan Sharansky continued his active human rights activities, gaining experience as a recognized, influential Israeli politician. He was a member of the Knesset for a long period and also had experience working as a minister and deputy prime minister in the Israeli governments, chaired the executive council of the Jewish Agency for Israel, and the supervisory board of the Babi Yar Holocaust Memorial Center.

In January 2023, Natan Sharansky turned 75 years old. He dedicated almost his entire conscious life to active human rights struggle, the protection of human rights, political activity, as well as the development of close diplomatic and interethnic ties between Israel and Ukraine.

Author: NANews Editorial

We write about the relations between Israel and Ukraine, so it is crucial for us not only to establish that the message is falsified but also to trace who spread it, what Israeli documents were used, and what was attempted to be instilled in the audience.

The NANews Israel News editorial team traced publications from October 23-24 and identified specific distribution platforms, including the resource of the state media group ‘Russia Today’. The story affects not only the reputation of the Ukrainian leadership: it uses the Israeli press, the local company registration system, and the existing medical cooperation between the two countries.

What was invented about Zelenska and how the Israeli newspaper was forged

The authors of the fake claimed that Olena Zelenska was creating a commercial clinic in Israel for addiction treatment. She was attributed with the desire to name the institution after Volodymyr Zelensky to present the president as a person who saves lives.

The messages being spread featured a quota: allegedly 15% of places are intended for free treatment of Ukrainian military personnel, while other patients must pay. The publications were accompanied by a fabricated quote from Zelenska that the path to a new life symbolically begins with her husband’s name. Neither this quote nor the stated treatment conditions have documentary confirmation.

The main ‘evidence’ was the front page of the Israeli newspaper Haaretz for October 21, 2026. It featured the English headline Zelenskyy Rehabilitation Center in Israel, a photo of Zelenska, and an image of a registration document. For a reader unfamiliar with the original issue, this looked like a real publication of a well-known Israeli publication.

The second element is the certificate of registration of the company Rehab named after Zelensky LTD, allegedly issued on October 14. The combination of the English name, Hebrew, and official formatting created the impression that the project had undergone legal registration even before the news appeared.

How the forgery was uncovered: Haaretz, company registry, and a 2022 photo

On October 26, the Ukrainian project StopFake published a detailed debunking. Fact-checkers found the original front page of Haaretz for October 21 in the PressReader archive and compared it with the distributed image.

On the real page was an article about the unexpected visit of US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth to Israel and his meeting with Benjamin Netanyahu on October 19. The material was accompanied by a photo of a street with election posters of Israeli politicians. The forgers replaced this article and photo, retaining the rest of the page’s layout, including the main headline about the elections in Israel. Hegseth’s visit is confirmed by a Reuters report.

The fake certificate also contains a verifiable error. The specified registration number is 468164815. In Israel, a company number, known as מספר חברה or ח.פ., consists of nine digits. For private companies, the prefix 51 is usually used, for public ones – 52, for foreign registered companies – 56. For other categories of corporations, there are separate prefixes, including 54, 55, and 58. The number of the fictional LTD starts with 4 and does not match the format of an Israeli company registration.

Such data is verified through the state Corporation Registry, under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Justice of Israel. For an Israeli reader, this is a crucial detail: a beautiful document in Hebrew does not in itself confirm the existence of a legal entity.

The photo of Zelenska on the fake newspaper page turned out to be real but taken from another story. It was published on the official website of the President of Ukraine on May 13, 2022, when the First Lady held a video meeting with Agata Kornhauser-Duda, Diana Nausėdienė, and Brigitte Macron. They discussed Ukrainian refugees, treatment of children with oncological diseases, and psychological assistance to war victims. The photo had no relation to the Israeli clinic.

Where the fake came from: Russian Telegram channels, ‘Ukraine.ru’, and bloggers

The most important part of the check is the path of the story’s spread. The initial creator of the fake images has not yet been identified, but publications from October 23 have been preserved.

On this day, the Russian site Giport posted a material under the headline ‘Olena Zelenska opens a rehab named after V. Zelensky in Israel’. The publication appeared at 12:28, its author is listed as Maksim Posmetny, and the source is named as ‘Ukraine.ru’. The text repeated the story about addiction treatment, a 15% quota, and the allegedly commercial nature of the clinic. The Giport illustration was marked as created by artificial intelligence.

‘Ukraine.ru’ is not a random private Telegram blog. The publication is part of the Russian state media group ‘Russia Today’. According to the editorial’s own information, the project was founded in May 2014 at the initiative of the media group’s general director Dmitry Kiselev. A link to the used Telegram post has been preserved: https://t.me/ukr_2025_ru/343637.

In the archive of the Telegram channel ‘Highly Likely’, publication No. 73624 from October 23, 10:01 UTC was found. It repeated information about free places for the Armed Forces of Ukraine and Zelenska’s fabricated words. Almost simultaneously, at 10:01:06 UTC, a similar text was published on Facebook by user Sergey Darwin. The message was later preserved by the MediaVault archive. These timestamps confirm early distribution but do not allow determining the original source.

The channel ‘Man from the 90s’ used the fake to mock the Ukrainian president, claiming that the center was primarily intended for Zelensky himself. Another trace was found in the archival description of the ‘Gasparyan’ broadcast on ‘SolovyovLIVE’ from October 23: the plot about the rehabilitation center is indicated at the 55:11 mark. The presence of this mention in the broadcast description is confirmed, but not the authorship of the fake.

On October 24, the story appeared in the St. Petersburg feed with a link to the channel ‘Mikhail Onufrienko’s World’ in the Russian messenger MAX. Onufrienko directly wrote that he considers the message a fake but used it for an anti-Semitic statement based on the stereotype about Jews and money.

This is a telling episode: even a story recognized as false continued to serve as a pretext for attacks. Russian platforms used one plot in different ways – from a pseudo-news with commercial details to insults to the President of Ukraine and anti-Semitic comments.

What Olena Zelenska actually did in Israel

This fabrication had a real background. Olena Zelenska was indeed involved in medical cooperation with Israel, especially in matters of psychological assistance and rehabilitation of war victims.

On May 17, 2022, Zelenska and Israel’s First Lady Michal Herzog discussed the training of Ukrainian specialists in dealing with post-traumatic disorders. It was also reported that about 7,000 Ukrainians had already received medical assistance from Israeli doctors. In July of that year, 27 Ukrainian mental health specialists completed training at the Israeli NATAL center, working with the consequences of war and terrorism.

NATAL is an Israeli organization specializing in psychological trauma. Its work includes helping people who have experienced combat, terrorist attacks, and other severe events. This experience was of practical interest to Ukraine.

On June 19, 2023, Zelenska visited Israel, met with President Isaac Herzog and Michal Herzog, visited the Sheba Medical Center in Ramat Gan, including the Safra Children’s Hospital and rehabilitation departments. They discussed assistance to children, treatment of post-traumatic conditions, and the transfer of Israeli experience to Ukrainian specialists. The program also included familiarization with the work of organizations dealing with psychological resilience and the experience of residents of Sderot living under the threat of rocket attacks.

Cooperation continues. In September 2026, NANews reported how Israel and the Kyiv region are discussing the expansion of rehabilitation, and 57 specialists from the region have already undergone Israeli training. It was about the Israel Trauma Coalition, training of doctors and psychologists, and the possible expansion of medical departments in Ukraine.

These projects are real. But none of them is proof of the existence of a commercial rehabilitation center named after Volodymyr Zelensky in Israel.

Why Israel was chosen again for an information attack

In such stories, Israel performs several functions at once. The name of a well-known newspaper gives the fabrication the appearance of independent confirmation, the registration document creates a sense of legal credibility, and the mention of medical rehabilitation makes the plot resemble a continuation of actual cooperation.

There is also a political meaning. The fake combines long-used accusations by Russian propaganda of Zelensky’s drug addiction, assumptions about the alleged preparation of his family to move abroad, and attempts to present assistance to Ukrainian military personnel as a way of private profit.

In June 2023, after Zelenska’s visit to Israel, an image of her fake Israeli passport was already being spread. The document contained a gross error: the expiration date allegedly ended on June 18, although the issuance date was June 19. In September 2026, fake passports of both spouses appeared again. Euronews and independent fact-checkers explained why the images are not real documents.

Forgery of a newspaper page is also not new. On May 19, 2026, The Jerusalem Post reported on a forged cover of its issue for May 12, aimed against Zelensky. Editor-in-chief Zvika Klein confirmed the forgery. In the same context, layouts of other international publications were used.

On October 22, a day before the discovered publications about the ‘rehab’, The Insider released an investigation into the Russian Agency for Social Design and influence operations in Israel. Based on the studied documents, journalists described fake pages of Walla, N12, and Mako, fake Israeli commentators, the use of the Hamas theme, and attempts to oppose US aid to Israel and Ukraine.

NANews thoroughly analyzed this investigation and the mention of our publication in the documents of Russian organizers. Back in 2024, we published material on Russian influence in Israel based on the Shomrim investigation, and in October 2026, we traced the spread of anti-Semitic fabrications about Hasidim, Ukrainian mobilization, and ‘Jewish autonomy’.

Documents studied by The Insider show the existence of organized Russian informational work in the Israeli direction. But there is no direct evidence that the Agency for Social Design specifically fabricated the fake Haaretz page at this time.

What is established and why this story is important for Israelis

The check as of October 28 allows us to confidently name several circumstances. The front page of Haaretz was altered, the registration document contained an unacceptable number for an Israeli LTD, and the photo of Zelenska was taken from a 2022 publication. Russian channels and sites have been spreading the fabrication since at least October 23, and among them was the Telegram resource of the state media group ‘Russia Today’.

Other questions remain open: who created the original images, in which channel they first appeared, whether there was a centralized directive to spread this particular story, and how many people saw the fake. The identified publications confirm the participation of specific distributors but do not themselves establish the customer.

For the Israeli audience, the problem is not limited to Zelensky’s name. By forging Haaretz and Ministry of Justice documents, the distributors use the reputation of Israeli institutions to lend credibility to political disinformation. At the same time, real assistance to Ukrainian patients and the training of specialists are replaced by a fictional commercial project.

As of October 28, 2026, there is no confirmation of the existence of the described ‘Zelensky Rehabilitation Center’. The falsification of published evidence, specific distribution channels, and the existence of previously documented information campaigns in which Israel was used to discredit Ukraine are confirmed.

Editorial check: October 28, 2026. Basis – message from the Center for Countering Disinformation at the NSDC of Ukraine, StopFake materials, original Haaretz front page in the PressReader archive, publications of Russian channels and media, official information on Ukraine-Israel cooperation, The Insider investigations, and previously published NANews materials. If evidence of the original authorship of the forgery appears, information about the source of distribution may be clarified.

Author: Pavel Shveiko

Official registration for Israel Open 2026. The number of spots for personal online meetings is limited.

The event poster features the Jewish Agency for Israel “Sokhnut”, the Ministry of Aliyah and Integration, Ofek Israeli (“Ofek Israeli”), the Department for the Promotion of Aliyah of the World Zionist Organization, and Keren Hayesod (“Keren Hayesod”). These are organizations that have been working with Jewish communities and potential repatriates for many years.

One of the key structures here is Ofek Israeli, created in 2016 with the participation of Sokhnut, the Israeli ministry, the World Zionist Organization, and Keren Hayesod. Its task is to help people understand the possibilities of repatriation, professional integration, and everyday life in Israel even before moving.

What Ukrainian families will receive: from choosing a city to an individual repatriation plan

The Israel Open 2026 program is designed for people who consider Israel as a place for future residence but do not yet know where to start. The organizers promise presentations of Israeli cities, educational projects, adaptation programs, as well as information about housing, professional prospects, and available benefits.

For families with children, choosing a city is especially important. It’s not just a matter of rental costs. Schools, kindergartens, job availability, Hebrew learning, medical infrastructure, and support for new repatriates are important.

That is why the format of individual consultations deserves attention. A person will be able to discuss their own situation with a representative of a specific program, clarify participation conditions, and understand what documents or additional actions may be needed.

Participation in the fair does not automatically grant the right to repatriation. It is determined by the Israeli Law of Return and confirmed in the prescribed manner. Ukrainian citizenship itself does not grant such a right.

MASA, SELA, and NAALE: what opportunities Israel offers to youth

In the announcement of Israel Open 2026 published in Ukraine, three educational directions are separately mentioned — MASA, SELA, and NAALE. These are programs with different goals and age requirements, so they cannot be considered interchangeable.

MASA (Masa Israel Journey) combines numerous programs of study, professional internships, volunteering, and acquaintance with Israel. Participants can gain practical experience in Israeli organizations and companies. Funding conditions and age restrictions depend on the chosen direction.

SELA is aimed at preparing young people for academic life in Israel. In particular, the program in Nitzana provides for Hebrew study, educational preparation, and acquaintance with the Israeli higher education system.

NAALE (Naale Elite Academy) is intended for teenagers who meet the established criteria. It allows for three or four years of study in an Israeli school, living in an educational institution, and obtaining an Israeli matriculation certificate.

For NANews Israel News Nikk.Agency, the topic of educational repatriation has a special significance: the connection between Ukraine and Israel continues not only through the relocation of adults but also through the education of the new generation. However, specific admission conditions, age limits, and availability of places for 2027 need to be clarified directly with program representatives.

From a fair in wartime Kyiv to online meetings in 2026

The current Israel Open is a continuation of an already existing story.

On October 19, 2025, a face-to-face repatriation fair was held in Kyiv. As previously reported by NANews, the event was attended by at least 800 people. The meeting took place in the underground space of a shopping center, where organizers were able to provide safer conditions during the war.

At that time, Ukrainians were presented with opportunities for employment, education, social support, and relocation. The event also involved the organization Israeli Friends of Ukraine led by Anna Zharova. Its representatives talked about the humanitarian ties between the two countries.

Even before that meeting, NANews thoroughly examined the Israel Open program in Kyiv, including youth directions and the participation of Israeli organizations.

In 2026, organizers are moving to a fully remote format. For Ukrainian families who are in different regions of the country or temporarily living outside its borders, this eliminates the need to travel to Kyiv to obtain initial information.

I consider it important and another: the continuation of such events shows that Israel continues to work with potential repatriates from Ukraine, despite the ongoing Russian war and its own security challenges.

However, the final list of participating cities, the schedule of presentations, and the specific amounts of financial support have not yet been published. The promised consultations should be seen as an opportunity to receive personal information, not as a guarantee of housing, work, or subsidies.

For registration, the Jewish Agency form is used. It requests contact details, information about education, profession, and family composition. There is also a notification about the processing and transfer of personal information for further support.

Israel Open 2026 will take place on November 8, from 12:00 to 17:00 Kyiv time. Participation is free, pre-registration is mandatory, the number of individual consultations is limited.

Ephraim Katzir (Katchalski)

This includes Ephraim Katzir (Katchalski) – a native of Kyiv, an outstanding biophysicist, and an influential Israeli politician, the fourth President of Israel.

Born in Kyiv

He was born in 1916 in Kyiv, but a few years later the family moved to “Palestine.” Ephraim grew up in an intellectual family where his grandfather was a respected rabbi, so respect for Jewish traditions was always important to him. After settling in Palestine with his family, the boy graduated from a gymnasium in Jerusalem and then entered the Hebrew University of Jerusalem.

Scientific Activity and Achievements

His professional interest and area of development became the world of biophysics, as evidenced by his successes in university studies and research: in 1941, Ephraim received a doctorate in biophysics.

His research on amino acids and proteins gained recognition and attracted attention in the scientific world. In 1950, he received the Weizmann Prize, followed by the Israel Prize and the Rothschild Prize. For significant scientific achievements, Ephraim Katchalski was admitted to the National Academy of Sciences of Israel, and later he was invited to membership in the American Academy of Sciences.

4th President of Israel

Such a successful scientific career played a special role for Ephraim: he was invited to run for the presidency of Israel by Golda Meir, who was then the Prime Minister. Katchalski was an unquestionable moral and intellectual authority of that time, so he received great support in the presidential elections.

In May 1973, he assumed the position of the fourth President of Israel. His tenure was not without challenges; on the contrary, it was full of historical and fateful decisions for the state.

In 1973, as president, he, along with the country, experienced the Yom Kippur War and a series of complex diplomatic challenges of that time. Ephraim Katzir’s popularity was significant, giving him a strong chance of being re-elected for a second presidential term in 1978, but he decided to return to scientific work.

Memory of Ukraine

Ephraim Katzir always remembered and frequently recalled the city of his birth and childhood – Kyiv.

In his memoirs, written shortly before his death, Kyiv memories often appear. After his presidency, he visited Kyiv, particularly as a world-renowned scientist.

Buried in Jerusalem

He lived a bright, meaningful life, fulfilling himself as a political figure and as a researcher. He died in 2009 in Israel at the venerable age of 93, surrounded by his loved ones. He is buried in Jerusalem.

For news of the day in Israel, news feed, news of Israel and the world, events of the day and the last hour, analysis – Israel News: Ephraim Katzir (Katchalski) 1916-2009.

https://renovation.nikk.co.il/

That is why the topic of apartment painting goes far beyond repair as such.

In northern Israel, it is closely linked with trust, local housing specifics, humidity by the sea, old housing stock, apartments after tenants, and the owner’s desire to put the property in order without heavy capital intervention. For NAnews readers, this story is also interesting because it very accurately shows how client behavior is changing in Israel: people are less and less reacting to the loud ‘cheap’, and more and more looking for peace of mind, a clear estimate, and normal human organization of the process.

Why apartment painting has become a separate topic for the Israeli housing market

In theory, painting seems like one of the simplest services. But in reality, it often becomes decisive for the perception of an apartment. Old traces from fixtures, stains on the ceiling, scuffs, unevenly painted areas, traces of dampness, darkened corners, visual fatigue of the walls — all this makes the housing less attractive, even if otherwise it is quite suitable for living.

For Haifa and the entire Krayot belt, this is especially noticeable. Humidity, the age of some buildings, an active rental market, and constant tenant turnover lead to the fact that it is the walls and ceilings that begin to show the apartment’s fatigue the fastest. Therefore, painting in the local reality is not a cosmetic trifle, but a full-fledged tool for preparing real estate.

Where this is especially felt

The most typical scenarios for northern Israel look like this:

• the apartment is being prepared for a new family to move in;
• the housing needs to be quickly refreshed after tenants;
• the owner wants to make the property visually tidier before selling;
• after dampness, stains, or a local leak, the room needs to be returned to a normal appearance;
• the family does not want to start a major renovation but wants to remove the feeling of neglect.

In all these cases, the client is looking not for ‘the cheapest painting’, but for a solution that will relieve household and financial anxiety.

Why the Israeli client looks at such a service differently

In Israel, there is a very strong sensitivity to time and predictability of expenses. People are willing to pay not only for manual work but also for the absence of chaos. That is why for Haifa, Kiryat Ata, Kiryat Bialik, Kiryat Motzkin, Kiryat Yam, Kiryat Haim, Nesher, and Tirat Carmel, not abstract promises of quality work best, but specific and understandable formulations: a predetermined volume, agreed deadlines, the ability to work in a residential apartment, neatness, help with damp walls, and no sudden additional charges.

What exactly the apartment painting market in Haifa and nearby sells

If you look at how the topic of apartment painting is presented in Israel, it quickly becomes clear: the market sells not just a master. It sells peace of mind, speed, a clear price, and no surprises. This is the key logic that today cannot be ignored by either business or the editorial office if it wants to honestly explain to the audience why some offers work better than others.

The main triggers that the client responds to

Urgency

One of the strongest motivators is the ability to do it quickly. Before moving in, after tenants, before holidays, before selling — in these situations, it is important for a person not in a month, but now. Therefore, the promise of quick deadlines and a predetermined schedule has become one of the strongest market arguments.

Work in a residential or furnished apartment

This is no longer an additional bonus, but a full-fledged competitive advantage. Not every family can move out furniture, vacate the apartment, and turn off normal life for several days. The ability to paint housing without moving and without completely freeing up space is a serious factor in choice.

Dampness, mold, and problematic walls

For coastal Haifa and parts of the northern regions of Israel, this is a separate topic. The client often looks not just for painting, but for a solution to a more painful problem: traces of moisture, mold, peeling old paint, and tired ceilings. Where the contractor can not just ‘paint over’, but honestly assess the condition of the surface and prepare it, trust is higher.

Clear estimate before starting

The Israeli client is extremely sensitive to an inflating price. Therefore, the strongest offers are those where the estimate is discussed in advance, the volume is fixed before the start, and does not spread during the process.

Cleanliness and neatness

For a residential apartment, this is one of the main factors. People are not afraid of the painting itself, but of turning the house into a mess. Where neat work, furniture protection, and normal handover of the object are promised, conversion is higher.

Why a cheap offer is not always the best for the northern Israel market

At first glance, it may seem that the one who promises a lower price wins. But in reality, too aggressive cheap offers often attract not the highest quality leads. The client comes for the price ‘from…’, and then faces the fact that in reality, everything is more expensive, more complicated, and more unpleasant. As a result, both sides are dissatisfied.

For Haifa and Krayot, a different model works stronger. Not ‘from 400 ₪ and then we’ll see’, but a calm bundle:

• fix the volume in advance;
• work neatly even in a residential apartment;
• help with mold, dampness, and problematic walls;
• do not impose unnecessary;
• discuss deadlines in advance;
• do not create sudden additional charges out of thin air.

This logic is perceived today as mature and reliable. For the Israeli audience, this is much closer to the real request than the loud ‘cheapness at any cost’.

How this is related to the real estate market and the psychology of the apartment owner

Painting is also about control. When an apartment is being prepared for rent, sale, or occupancy, the owner wants to quickly regain a sense of manageability. He is not always ready for large-scale repairs, but wants to remove obvious visual problems.

Here the practical power of the service is manifested. Well-organized painting allows:

• quickly change the first impression of the apartment;
• make the property visually brighter and tidier;
• reduce the feeling of ‘fatigue’ without heavy investments;
• prepare the housing for the next stage of use.

For the Israeli reality, this is especially relevant in cities where the rental market is active, and apartments often work as an investment asset. And here NAnews — Israel News can look at the issue more broadly than the household level: painting becomes part of a real estate management strategy, not just a household trifle. That is why NAnews — Israel News | Nikk.Agency considers this topic not only as a service but also as socio-economic: it is about how Israelis reduce costs, speed up housing preparation, and try to minimize stress around property.

What is especially important for Haifa, Krayot, Nesher, and Tirat Carmel

The local context is critical here. You cannot talk about painting an apartment in a conditionally new residential complex and in an old house with a history of dampness, dozens of traces of previous rentals, and walls that have not been updated for years in the same way.

Local specifics of the area

For this zone, the following are characteristic:

• old housing stock;
• coastal humidity;
• apartments after long-term rentals;
• the need to quickly prepare housing for re-renting;
• high sensitivity to deadlines and price.

That is why a separate service page, separate advertising, and a separate presentation of the topic work better than general texts ‘about repairing everything in the world’.

Why it is important to list cities, not hide behind the word ‘Krayot’

For trust and SEO, it is very important to say not only ‘Krayot’, but specifically: Kiryat Ata, Kiryat Bialik, Kiryat Motzkin, Kiryat Yam, Kiryat Haim, plus Nesher and Tirat Carmel. When a person sees their place directly, the text is perceived as a response to their real situation, not as a universal template.

Which offers really work best

Below is a short table of what most effectively removes client fear and better sells the service in this market.

What apartment owners should consider before ordering painting

Before choosing a contractor, it is useful for the owner to check not only the price but also the logic of the offer itself.

What to look at first

Is there a clear explanation of the scope of work

If it is unclear what exactly is included in the price, there will almost always be problems later.

Are they ready to work in a furnished apartment

For families and busy people, this is often one of the main questions.

Is there an honest conversation about problem areas

If there are traces of moisture on the ceiling or mold on the walls, it is important not the promise ‘everything will disappear’, but a real assessment.

Do they understand the local specifics

Haifa and northern Israel are not an abstract market. Here, humidity, old stock, and quick housing preparation scenarios are important.

Where you can view services on the topic

Russian version:

https://renovation.nikk.co.il/

Hebrew:

https://renovation.nikk.co.il/he/

English version:

https://renovation.nikk.co.il/en/

Conclusion

Apartment painting in Haifa, Kiryat Ata, Kiryat Bialik, Kiryat Motzkin, Kiryat Yam, Kiryat Haim, Nesher, and Tirat Carmel is no longer a story about ‘finding a painter and refreshing the walls’. Today it is a full-fledged service where peace of mind, speed, a clear estimate, neatness, work in a residential apartment, and no unpleasant surprises are sold.

For the Israeli audience, this is especially sensitive because an apartment here is not only a place of life but also an expensive asset, a rental object, family security, and a constant source of household solutions. That is why the market is increasingly moving away from cheap loud promises and moving towards normal, clear, and predictable service.

For business, this means one thing: the winner is not the one who shouts the loudest about the price, but the one who best alleviates the client’s fears. And for the reader, it means something else: when choosing a painting service, it’s important not to look at the attractive number in the first line, but at how well the scope, deadlines, limitations, and real results were explained to you in advance.

NANovosti believes that it is precisely such local topics that today form the true picture of everyday Israel: where decisions are made not at the level of advertising, but at the level of trust, practicality, and the ability to save a person time, money, and nerves.

Author: Lev Varshavsky

The author of the book is German historian of Croatian origin Martina Bitunjac, a researcher of European Jewry and Holocaust history. Her work was first published in German in 2019, and in 2021 it was translated into Croatian. Now the biography of the girl, who was called the “Croatian Shirley Temple” in pre-war Zagreb, has also received a Ukrainian version.

The story of Lea Deutsch is little known outside Croatia, although her life and death are connected with one of the most tragic pages of European Jewry.

Lea Deutsch: the girl applauded by Zagreb and destroyed by the Holocaust

Lea Dragica Deutsch was born in 1927 in Zagreb, then part of the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats, and Slovenes. Her father Stepan was a lawyer, and her mother Ivka came from the Singer family. Lea had a younger brother Sasha.

At the age of five, the girl first appeared on the stage of the Croatian National Theater. Soon she became one of the most recognizable young actresses in the city. Lea performed in plays based on works by Molière, Shakespeare, Erich Kästner, sang, danced, and performed in operettas.

Newspapers wrote about her extraordinary talent, and audiences came specifically to see the little artist. During her nine-year theatrical career, she managed to play many roles, including boys, princes, and little aristocrats.

Everything changed in April 1941, when after the defeat of Yugoslavia, the Independent State of Croatia was established, governed by the fascist Ustaše movement, an ally of Nazi Germany.

Jews were deprived of civil rights, expelled from educational institutions, dismissed from work, subjected to arrests and deportations. Lea could no longer perform in the theater. Her family lost their previous home. Attempts by relatives and representatives of the cultural community to protect the girl did not help.

In May 1943, Lea, her mother, and brother were deported towards Auschwitz. According to the Croatian Encyclopedia and the Jewish Biographical Dictionary of Croatia, the sixteen-year-old actress died during transportation in an overcrowded railway car. The exact circumstances of her death have not been fully documented.

Her mother and brother also perished in the Holocaust. Her father survived the war by hiding in a Zagreb hospital.

Martina Bitunjac: the research that restored Lea Deutsch’s name

Historian Martina Bitunjac works at the Moses Mendelssohn Center for European-Jewish Studies in Potsdam. Her research focuses on the history of Southeastern Europe, Jewish communities, and the participation of women in the Ustaše movement.

In 2019, the German publisher Hentrich & Hentrich released her 70-page biography of Lea Deutsch in the series Jüdische Miniaturen. The work is based on historical documents, photographs, theatrical press, and archival research, including materials collected in Croatia and Israel.

Bitunjac did not limit herself to describing the young actress’s death. She reconstructed her short creative career, family environment, and the circumstances of Jewish persecution in Zagreb.

In 2023, together with Croatian historian Damir Agičić, she prepared the exhibition “Between Fame and Oblivion. Lea Deutsch — Prodigy and Holocaust Victim.” The exhibition showcased theatrical photographs, pre-war press publications, and documents from the time of the fascist regime.

In 2011, a Croatian feature film “Lea and Darija” was also dedicated to the actress’s fate.

Natalia Bakulina, “Beit-Hana,” and the Ukrainian-Israeli connection

The translator of the Ukrainian edition Natalia Valeryevna Bakulina is a researcher with many years of experience in the field of Jewish education. In 2012, she defended her candidate dissertation on the methodology of teaching Hebrew in Ukrainian schools.

Bakulina worked at the Institute of Pedagogy of the National Academy of Pedagogical Sciences of Ukraine, participated in the creation of textbooks and educational-methodical materials on Hebrew. In the academic electronic archive, 151 publications are registered in her name, including co-authored works.

The “Beit-Hana” Institute, with which she collaborates, has been operating in Dnipro since 1995. It began as a Jewish women’s pedagogical college, training teachers for national schools and kindergartens. Today it is a registered private higher educational institution, combining pedagogical training with the study of Jewish culture and traditions.

For the Israeli reader, this story has another dimension. Holocaust research has long united archives and specialists from different countries, and preserving the names of the deceased remains one of the main tasks of the Jerusalem memorial “Yad Vashem.”

In the “Jews from Ukraine” section, the publication Nikk.Agency Israel News previously told about Mordechai Shenhavi, a native of Volochysk, who was at the origins of “Yad Vashem”. Another of our publications was dedicated to Sonya Delaunay, an artist with Odessa Jewish roots who survived the Holocaust years in France.

Lea Deutsch was not a native of Ukraine. But the Ukrainian translation of her biography makes the history of the destroyed Jewish world of the Balkans accessible to a new audience. This is especially significant for a country where the memory of the Holocaust is connected not only with Babi Yar but also with hundreds of cities and towns where Jewish communities existed.

So far, the “Beit-Hana” institute has not announced in the published notice the exact print run, the publisher of the Ukrainian version, and the conditions of its distribution. The main thing is known: Martina Bitunjac’s research now exists in Ukrainian thanks to the work of Natalia Bakulina.

Author: Victoria Katsman

For those who grew up in Ukraine, the name is familiar. And for Israelis who have never attended such evenings, it’s an opportunity to get acquainted with a rather unusual part of Ukrainian folk culture. For example, to find out why adults try to bite a cake hanging on a ribbon and why this is accompanied by jokes and laughter.

What will happen at Andriyivski Vechornytsi in Tel Aviv

The organizers promise an evening where guests can not only listen to Ukrainian customs but also participate in traditional entertainment.

Program:

• Interesting stories about ancient Ukrainian customs.
• Andriyivski games and traditional fortune-telling.
• The ritual of “biting the kalita”.
• Homemade Ukrainian treats from pani Maria.
• Aromatic Carpathian mulled wine.
• Ukrainian music, communication, and lively dancing.

Participants are encouraged to complement their clothing with an embroidered shirt or any element of Ukrainian national symbolism.

The meeting will take place at the SHO? restaurant, well-known to visitors of Ukrainian cultural events in Tel Aviv. Joint projects dedicated to Ukrainian history and traditions have already been held here by MAK_UA.

What are Andriyivski Vechornytsi and why do they bite the kalita

Andriyivski Vechornytsi is one of the ancient Ukrainian customs associated with the feast of Apostle Andrew the First-Called.

In Ukrainian villages, such evenings traditionally gathered young people. Girls and boys got acquainted, sang, joked, played, and prepared treats. Special attention was given to fortune-telling about future weddings and grooms. Today, these are primarily folklore entertainments rather than serious attempts to predict fate.

The most recognizable ritual is biting the kalita.

The kalita is a large round cake baked especially for the holiday. It is decorated, hung on a ribbon, and participants try to bite off a piece, often jumping. In the traditional game, there is also a character, pan Kalitinsky, who with jokes and challenges hinders the task.

Ethnographic descriptions of this custom have preserved many regional differences. In some places, the kalita was smeared with honey, in others decorated with poppy seeds and nuts. But the main thing remained a fun competition where participation was more important than victory.

There is another detail worth explaining to Israeli readers. Previously, the feast of Andrew was celebrated on December 13 according to the old church calendar. After many Ukrainian churches switched to the new calendar, the date falls on November 30. That is why the evening in Tel Aviv is scheduled for the last day of autumn.

Who organizes the celebration

MAK_UA — Ukrainian Art Amateur Forge in Israel — is a non-profit socio-artistic association engaged in Ukrainian cultural initiatives in Israel.

Its programs include theatrical meetings, folk festivals, creative events, and family projects.

NAnews — News of Israel | Nikk.Agency has already reported on the cultural calendar of MAK_UA for the second half of 2026. Andriyivski Vechornytsi were then announced for November 30, but without a detailed program. Now the organizers have named the place, participation cost, and prepared entertainment.

For Ukrainians living in Israel, such meetings allow them to preserve familiar holidays and pass them on to their children. For Israelis of Ukrainian descent, it’s a better acquaintance with the customs of their parents, grandparents. And for guests not connected to Ukraine by family history, it’s an introduction to the country’s culture through music, food, and live communication.

Especially today, when the Russian war has forced millions of Ukrainians to live far from home, the opportunity to gather for a familiar childhood holiday takes on additional significance.

Where, when, and how to register

‘Andriyivski Vechornytsi’ — Tel Aviv, November 30, 2026.

• Date: Monday, November 30, 2026.
• Time: 19:00–23:00.
• Place: Ukrainian cuisine restaurant SHO? — Ukrainian Traditional Food.
• Address: Karlibach Street, 3, Tel Aviv.
• Participation: 120 ₪.
• Registration: via WhatsApp at 054-928-5990.
• Organizer: MAK_UA — Ukrainian Art Amateur Forge in Israel.

Official event page ‘Andriyivski Vechornytsi’ on Facebook — here you can see the organizers’ announcement, follow updates, and express your interest in the event.

Other concerts, performances, and cultural events can be found on the partner site sTDe — NAnews, Israel events poster.

This Monday, Ukrainian vechornytsi will not be held in a village house as a hundred years ago, but in a restaurant in the center of Tel Aviv. Instead of neighbors from one village, people from different cities of Ukraine and Israel will meet at the table. But the kalita, songs, jokes, and the desire to gather together again remain part of the same custom.

This day serves as an important reminder of how the tragedy of World War II continues in the collective memory of nations and how it is connected to the present.

After the Soviet invasion of Poland, between 232,000 and 255,000 soldiers of the Polish Army and other formations were captured. More than half of these people were sent by the Soviets to prisoner-of-war camps, where, according to NKVD reports, there were 130,242 Polish citizens. From them, 8,348 officers were separated and placed in camps in Kozelsk, Ostashkov, and Starobelsk, then “transferred to the NKVD’s disposal.” In the spring of 1940, under Stalin’s order, the NKVD executed almost all of the captured Polish officers. According to various estimates, the mass graves — so-called “pits of death” — in Katyn, Tver, Bykivnia, Kharkiv, and other locations contain between 15,000 and 24,000 Poles.

Day of Remembrance for the Victims of the Katyn Crime: Historical Context

The Day of Remembrance for the Victims of the Katyn Crime was officially established by the Sejm of the Republic of Poland in 2007. This day was dedicated to the memory of Polish prisoners of war who were executed by the NKVD in 1940. The tragedy that occurred in Katyn became a symbol of the crime committed by the Soviet regime against the Polish people. In Katyn, around 20,000 Polish officers were executed, among whom there were many Jewish officers. The difficulty in determining the exact number of Jews among the victims is due to the fact that many names were not recorded, and most of the victims’ relatives perished during the Holocaust.

Quote: “On April 13, 1943, the radio station ‘Radio Berlin’ reported the discovery of mass graves of Polish officers in the Katyn Forest,” — thus began the story that immortalized the Katyn tragedy in global memory.

Facts and Data: Number of Jewish Officers Killed

According to historical research, at least 438 Jewish officers were among those killed in Katyn, along with many Polish officers of Jewish origin who served in the Polish Army. This fact highlights the deep historical ties between the Polish and Jewish peoples. In 1939, there were about 100,000 Jews in the Polish Army, and 6-7% of them held officer ranks.

Among them were not only active-duty officers but also reserve specialists — doctors, pharmacists, lawyers, and engineers, whose lives were tragically cut short by the NKVD’s actions.

Professor Marian Fuks from the Jewish Historical Institute published lists of Jewish victims in the 1990s in the “Folkshtimme” publication. In the book by Binyamin Meirchak, there are the names of 231 Jews killed in Katyn, 188 in Kharkiv, and 19 Jews who died in Medno. Among them were both active-duty officers and reserve officers — doctors, pharmacists, lawyers, and engineers.

How many Jews were among the victims:

• In Katyn, 231 Jewish officers were killed.
• In Kharkiv, 188 Jewish officers were killed.
• In Medno, 19 Jewish officers were killed.

There is also a study stating that “it should be assumed that the ratio of Jews to non-Jews was the same as in the camps. According to my estimates, there were at least 1,000 Jews among them. Thus, out of 26,000 people listed in the Politburo’s resolution, there should have been at least 2,000 Jews. Therefore, we must state that the first mass extermination of Jews on Soviet territory occurred in April 1940.”

Baruch Shteinberg: Chief Rabbi of the Polish Army and Victim of Katyn

One of the most well-known Jewish officers who perished in Katyn was Baruch Shteinberg, the chief rabbi of the Polish Army. He was born in Peremyshliany, now in Ukraine, and became the head of the spiritual care of the Polish Army. Shteinberg was one of the most prominent Jewish figures of his time, actively involved in the social life of Poland and a supporter of Józef Piłsudski.

In 1939, he was captured, and in the spring of 1940, he was handed over to the NKVD. He was most likely executed in the Katyn Forest on April 12 or 14, 1940.

Quote: “On Friday, when evening arrived, we went under the roof of a small shed. There, hundreds of Jews, under the leadership of chaplain Dr. Shteinberg, fervently prayed in Hebrew,” — recalls Bronislaw Mlynarski in his book “In Soviet Captivity”.

Facts About the Katyn Crime: Execution of Polish Officers

• Date of the tragedy: In 1940, after the Soviet invasion of Poland, about 20,000 Polish officers were executed.
• Places of burial: Mass burials took place in Katyn, Kharkiv, Tver, Bykivnia, and other locations.
• Methods of killing: The NKVD executed prisoners with shots to the back of the head, often binding their hands behind their backs or covering their heads with clothing.
• First exhumation: Exhumation was conducted by German troops in 1943. It revealed the mass graves, which became known to the world.

Parallels to the Present: How the Katyn Tragedy Is Connected to Putin’s Russia

Today, April 13, we remember the Katyn tragedy, which has not only historical but also deep political significance. The tragedy that occurred more than 80 years ago still resonates with current events. In particular, the reminder of the victims of Katyn and the many Jewish officers killed in that crime is particularly relevant in light of current events in Ukraine.

Now, as the world faces the ongoing Putin’s aggression, many historians and experts are drawing parallels with the methods used by the NKVD in 1940. This is mass killing of civilians, which is also happening in Ukraine, where Russian forces continue their violent actions. Such actions are reminiscent of those used by the NKVD in the past and demonstrate how historical lessons can be useful in a modern context.

Quote: “We cannot forget the past, or it will once again become part of our present,” — emphasizes historian Professor Marian Fuks.

Memory of Katyn as the Foundation for the Future

As a people, we must remember the tragedies of the past so they are not repeated. The memory of the Katyn tragedy should serve not only as a reminder of the victims but also as a lesson for us all. April 13 is not just a day of remembrance, but a day that calls us to reflect on how we can improve relations between peoples who have endured common tragedies.

NAnews – News of Israel continues to highlight such important events to emphasize the importance of historical memory and strengthening mutual understanding between nations. Respect for history and its facts helps us build a future free from myths and propaganda, and thus build stronger ties between Israel and Poland.

Conclusion

April 13 is a day that reminds us of the tragedy of the past and how important it is to remember those who gave their lives for the ideals of freedom and justice. We must preserve the memory of the victims of Katyn and continue to build a more just world where such tragedies will never repeat.

Follow publications in the “!! History and Facts” section, as knowing the past is the way to strong ties in the present.

Author: Elena Gunko

The conference combined discussions on Nazi crimes with issues of modern security, anti-Semitism, and responsibility for military aggression. A special place was given to the testimonies of people who survived persecution during World War II and now find themselves witnesses to the war in Ukraine again.

Roman Shvartsman and 35 years of struggle for historical memory

One of the central participants was Roman Shvartsman — chairman of the Odessa Regional Association of Former Prisoners of Ghettos and Nazi Concentration Camps. As a child, he survived the Bershad ghetto in the territory of present-day Vinnytsia region, and later dedicated decades to preserving Holocaust testimonies.

In January 2025, Shvartsman addressed the German Bundestag with the words: “In those times, Hitler tried to kill me because I am Jewish. Now Putin is trying to kill me because I am Ukrainian.” NANews detailed this speech and the reaction of German politicians. His testimony became one of the conceptual foundations of the current conference in Odessa.

Founded in 1991, the association supports former prisoners, preserves memories, historical documents, and commemorates the deceased. This work gained special significance after decades of Soviet policy, where Jewish victims of Nazi crimes were often mentioned only as anonymous “peaceful citizens.”

For Odessa, this history is particularly painful. In October 1941, on the territory of the powder depots in the area of Lustdorf Road, the occupiers killed tens of thousands of people, mostly Jews. Roman Shvartsman reminded conference participants of the 25,000 dead. Today, preserving their names and fates remains one of the tasks of the city’s Jewish organizations.

Israel, Germany, and international responsibility

The conference was attended by representatives of Ukrainian authorities, the diplomatic corps, scientific institutions, and Jewish organizations. Among the invited guests was Eyal Pevzner, head of the Israeli “Nativ” representation in Odessa. “Nativ” is an Israeli state structure working, in particular, with Jewish communities of the former USSR and issues of repatriation.

Germany was represented by former Bundestag deputy, co-founder of the Center for Liberal Modernity Marie-Luise Beck, and Goethe-Institut representative Jakob Ratzek. The governing mayor of Berlin, Kai Wegner, addressed the participants via video link. The German side emphasized the importance of historical responsibility for Nazi crimes and the need to preserve the memory of the victims.

Participants in the scientific discussions, including historians Anatoly Podolsky, Vitaly Chernoivanenko, and Sergey Girik, discussed national identity, countering anti-Semitism, and ways to pass on historical knowledge to future generations. Lawyers and international law specialists separately examined the legacy of the Nuremberg Trials and the issue of responsibility for modern international crimes.

For Israeli society, these issues are of direct importance. The memory of Jewish communities in Ukraine is an important part of Holocaust history, and preserving testimonies of the deceased unites researchers and families on both sides of the border. In September 2026, a ceremony in memory of the victims of Babi Yar was held at Jerusalem’s ‘Yad Vashem’, which was also reported by NANews Israel News Nikk.Agency.

Memorial ‘Against Oblivion’: Memory that must be preserved

One of the practical issues of the conference was the fate of the future memorial ‘Against Oblivion’ on Lustdorf Road, 27. The project, developed by Odessa and German specialists, provides for the installation of nine corten steel steles in the shape of tongues of flame. The composition also includes the Star of David and the names of the deceased Jews.

According to the organizers, Germany had previously allocated one million euros for the construction of the memorial. However, after the start of the full-scale Russian invasion in 2022, these funds were redirected, in agreement with partners, to support the civilian population and the defense of Odessa. The implementation of the memorial project is planned to resume after the war ends with Ukraine’s victory.

The conference once again raised the question of how to preserve the testimonies of the generation that survived the Holocaust. For Odessa, this is connected with specific sites of mass killings, for Israel — with the memory of Jewish communities in Ukraine and the fates of families whose history began long before the creation of the State of Israel.

The editorial board of NANews received informational materials from the conference’s organizing committee. The full video recording of the event is available on YouTube.

But amid the destruction, losses, and anxiety, there are also stories that inspire — especially for the Jewish community, both in Ukraine and in Israel.

One of the largest portals for the ultra-Orthodox audience in Israel, “בחדרי חרדים” (Behadrei Haredim), on June 20, 2025, published two stories from Kyiv that vividly reflect how Putin’s aggression affects Jewish life in Ukraine.

On one hand — the shelling and destruction of a Talmud Torah building in Kyiv.

We already reported about this on June 10, 2025 — in the photo — a burned Hanukkiah thrown by the explosion, Kyiv, Artem Business Center, Hlybochytska 4, June 10, 2025

On the other hand — the personal story of a Ukrainian soldier who, after witnessing the death of his comrades, discovered his Jewish roots and decided to undergo brit milah (circumcision).

These two events are about pain and hope, about war and faith, about sacrifice and choice. They touch on the deepest levels of how Jewish Ukraine experiences the war — and why it matters for Israel.

A soldier who became Jewish not by blood, but by choice

A young Ukrainian man, a musician and sound engineer by profession, was invited to a studio where a song for the Jewish community of Kyiv was being recorded. The project was coordinated with the participation of Rabbi Yaakov Bleich, whose work includes dozens of Jewish initiatives across the country.

During the recording, choir members noticed a kippah on the sound engineer’s head. The question came half-jokingly: “Are you Jewish by any chance?” The answer turned out to be unexpectedly serious:

“Yes, I’m Jewish. But I’m completely secular. I don’t know anything about religion. I just know I’m Jewish, so I wear a kippah.”

That initial interaction with the Jewish community did not go any further. The young man went to the front lines. But fate had already prepared a turning point that would bring him back to his true self.

Pain, explosion, and rebirth: how tragedy became a choice

A few weeks later, while on a combat mission with fellow soldiers, a Russian missile hit their position. It was one of the many shellings that Putin’s army relentlessly carries out on Ukrainian soil. Several of his comrades were killed instantly, and others were seriously wounded. He miraculously survived — with a hand injury, but alive.

This moment was life-changing. Having experienced fear, pain, and death firsthand, he realized he needed to rethink his life. While in the hospital, he told Avraham Bleich, the son of the Chief Rabbi of Ukraine:

“With God’s help, I want to begin getting closer to Judaism.”

A week later, in a modest yet moving ceremony, he underwent brit milah. It was not just a formality. He took the name Moshe — in honor of Moshe Rabbeinu, as he explained: “Moshe gave the Torah, and now I want to accept it.”

This story is not just about a religious act. It is a story of inner transformation, one that happens not in a synagogue, but against the backdrop of war, under the sound of sirens, when a person searches for meaning to hold on to.

While some choose faith, others lose their home: the Talmud Torah attack

At the same time, a Russian missile struck the Talmud Torah building in Kyiv. Before the war, it was a place of education for children from Kyiv’s Jewish community, including students from the Chabad movement and others connected to Rabbi Bleich’s educational programs. The building, a spiritual home for dozens of families, was completely destroyed.

Photos from the site show severe destruction: collapsed walls, destroyed classrooms and prayer halls. Study materials, religious books, ritual objects — all buried under rubble.

“We are witnessing not just the destruction of buildings, but of spiritual centers. The destruction in Kyiv echoes what we experience in Israel from Iranian attacks. But in these moments, we see more Jews returning to their roots, despite everything,” said Rabbi Yaakov Bleich.

A shared front: Israel, Ukraine, and spiritual resistance

The website NAnews – Israel News emphasizes that such stories must not be overlooked. Because they concern what is most essential — the preservation of Jewish identity, even in the midst of total war. When a young man undergoes circumcision, despite his injury and recent trauma, it is an act of inner resistance, an act of faith, an act of belonging to the Jewish people.

When Jewish schools are destroyed — it’s not just about walls. It’s about how Russia attacks not only Ukraine but Jewish roots, education, and the future.

These moments make the closeness between the Jewish and Ukrainian peoples all the more evident. In recent years, cooperation between the communities of both countries has intensified. And the way Ukraine protects its Jewish institutions — even during war — is an example to the world.

Conclusion: Moshe’s path and a destroyed school — two faces of one war

A soldier no one had known became a symbol of spiritual rebirth. He didn’t just survive — he returned to his roots and became Moshe.

And the destroyed Talmud Torah in Kyiv became a symbol that the enemy destroys not only buildings, but meaning itself. But Jewish life continues — even under fire.

The website NAnews – Israel News will continue to report on such stories. Because in them lies the truth about war and faith, about the line between loss and rediscovery.

The discussion is currently about supporting the idea itself: the final location has not yet been approved, and the final decision must be made by the city council deputies, reported Odessa media on May 15, 2026.

For Odessa, this is not just a question of urban sculpture. For Israel, it’s not just news from Ukraine. Jabotinsky was born in Odessa, formed in its multilingual and Jewish intellectual environment, and then became a figure whose legacy is directly connected with the history of Zionism, Jewish self-defense, and the future statehood of Israel.

Initiative from Odessa and Jerusalem

The proposal to install a bust of Vladimir Jabotinsky was submitted to the city hall by the World Club of Odessans and the Menachem Begin Institute in Jerusalem. This very connection shows that it is about a memory that has long gone beyond the boundaries of one city.

Odessa gave Jabotinsky language, character, urban optics, and literary memory. Israel received from his ideas one of the important lines of political Zionism, which influenced decades of Jewish history.

The initiators proposed placing the monument near the Odessa Opera House — in Palais-Royal or on Lanzheronovskaya Street. The argument was not accidental: it was in this area that the editorial office of the “Odessa Leaflet” was once located, where Jabotinsky worked. Moreover, his novel “The Five” begins at the Opera building — one of the main symbols of old Odessa.

However, it was the location that became the main subject of debate.

Why Palais-Royal raised questions

At the meeting of the historical and toponymic commission, some participants considered the proposed locations “unsuccessful.” Palais-Royal and the space near the Opera House are the historical core of the city, associated with the protected architectural environment of Odessa.

Despite the absolute support for the idea of creating the monument, the question of its exact location remains open. Members of the historical and toponymic commission voted to recommend alternative locations for the bust together with the Department of Architecture and Urban Planning.

The main argument of the opponents of such a location was not about Jabotinsky himself, but about preserving the historical appearance of the center. A new monument in this area may raise questions about the visual balance of the space, especially considering the status of Odessa’s historical center and the requirements for protecting the urban environment.

“We must approach this issue in a balanced way, considering Odessa’s status as a UNESCO World Heritage Site,” emphasized the relevant department.

Since the historical and toponymic commission is an advisory body, its decision is of a recommendatory nature. The final decision on the location and permission for the construction of the monument must be made by the deputies at a session of the Odessa City Council.

As a result, the commission supported the idea of the monument but recommended looking for other possible locations together with relevant city structures. That is, the political and cultural “yes” has already been voiced, but the architectural point on the map has not yet been set.

Why Jabotinsky is important for Odessa, Ukraine, and Israel

Vladimir, or Ze’ev, Jabotinsky was born in Odessa in 1880. He was a writer, journalist, translator, publicist, political thinker, and one of the leaders of the Zionist movement. His name is associated with Revisionist Zionism, the idea of Jewish self-defense, and the creation of the Jewish Legion within the British Army.

For Israel, Jabotinsky is not a museum figure. His legacy continues to be part of the country’s political memory, especially in the right-wing Zionist camp. The Menachem Begin Institute in Jerusalem, as a participant in the initiative, makes this bridge between Odessa and Israel particularly noticeable.

NANews — Israel News | Nikk.Agency considers this story in this context: Odessa is returning to the public space not just a famous compatriot, but a person whose ideas became part of the road to Jewish statehood.

For the Ukrainian context, this initiative is also important. Against the backdrop of Russia’s war against Ukraine, Odessa continues to rethink its urban space, deciding which names should be visible in the city center and which symbols of the past require reconsideration. The monument to Jabotinsky in this sense can become part of a broader work with memory — not imperial, but urban, Jewish, Ukrainian, and European.

Odessa in Jabotinsky’s biography

Jabotinsky always remained connected with Odessa, even when his life took place far beyond its borders. His novel “The Five” became one of the most famous literary texts about old Odessa, its Jewish environment, family memory, and the disappearing world of the early 20th century.

Therefore, the debate about the monument’s location does not cancel the main thing: the city has effectively recognized the need to return Jabotinsky to its visible historical space.

This is especially symbolic for Odessa, where Jewish history was not an external addition to the city’s image, but one of its foundations. Odessa’s Jews created newspapers, schools, theaters, literary circles, trade networks, political movements, and charitable structures. Jabotinsky grew up in this complex urban environment — multilingual, argumentative, ambitious, and very Odessan.

Memory has already been attempted to be preserved — and it has been destroyed

In Odessa, this is not the first attempt to perpetuate the memory of Jabotinsky. A commemorative bas-relief was installed on the house on Yevreyskaya Street, where he lived, back in 1997. Later it was damaged and then stolen by vandals. Currently, the city maintains a mural depicting Jabotinsky on Bazarnaya, 33 — in the house where he was born and raised.

This detail gives the new initiative additional meaning.

The monument to Jabotinsky is not only a question of bronze, pedestal, and city commission. It is a question of protecting memory. Especially in a region where Jewish heritage often exists between respect, oblivion, political disputes, and direct vandalism.

What will happen next

After the decision of the historical and toponymic commission, city structures need to select a suitable place for the monument. Then the issue must go through further procedures and be submitted for consideration by the deputies of the Odessa City Council.

It is not yet possible to say that the bust has already been installed or that the point near the Opera House has been finally approved. It is more accurate to formulate it this way: the commission supported the initiative to install a monument to Vladimir Jabotinsky in Odessa, but the location is still being agreed upon.

For Israel, this story is important already now.

It shows that Ukraine, despite the war, continues to work with historical memory not only through renaming streets and dismantling imperial symbols but also through the return of names associated with Jewish history, Zionism, and the future of Israel.

In the case of Jabotinsky, this is especially true. He was a son of Odessa and at the same time one of those people whose ideas became part of the great Jewish path to statehood.

Therefore, the future monument in Odessa is not just a bust of a famous native of the city. It is a sign that between Ukraine, Israel, and the Jewish people, there is a memory that cannot be reduced to diplomatic statements. It stands in biographies, books, streets, houses, stolen bas-reliefs, and new decisions of city commissions.

A Jew from Drohobych who became an artist of national revival

Ephraim Moses Lilien was born on May 23, 1874, in Drohobych — a city in Galicia, which was then part of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. Today it is the Lviv region of Ukraine. At birth, his name is also indicated as Maurycy Lilien. He died on July 18, 1925, in Badenweiler, Germany, but between these two dates, he managed to travel a path that connected Ukrainian Galicia, European modernism, Jewish culture, Zionism, and the future Israel.

For the section “Jews from Ukraine” Lilien is an almost ideal hero. His biography shows that Jewish history on Ukrainian lands is not only about shtetls, synagogues, pogroms, wars, and tragedies of the 20th century. It is also a powerful contribution to world art, European graphics, the culture of the Jewish national movement, and the visual language without which early Zionism would look different.

He was not born in Jerusalem, Berlin, or Vienna. His first point on the map was Drohobych.

It was from this city that the man later called “the first Zionist artist” emerged. This definition does not mean that there were no artists among Jews before him. It means something else: Lilien was one of the first to turn the idea of Jewish national revival into recognizable images — prophets, exiles, heroes, farmers, people who look not only back to the past but also forward to the future.

Drohobych was not an accidental backdrop. Galicia at the end of the 19th century was a complex space where Ukrainian, Jewish, Polish, German-speaking, and Austrian cultural environments coexisted. Here, a talented person could hear different languages, see different religious traditions, and early understand that identity is not a flat scheme but a whole world.

Later, Drohobych will be associated with Bruno Schulz, the Gottlieb brothers, and other names important for European and Jewish memory. Lilien occupies a special place in this row: he became not only an artist of his city or his time but also one of those who helped the Jewish people see themselves in a new historical image.

From a sign maker to European modernism and Zionism

Ukrainian period: Drohobych, Lviv, Krakow, and Lilien’s first steps

Ephraim Moses Lilien was born on May 23, 1874, in Drohobych — then it was Galicia as part of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, today the Lviv region of Ukraine. In the Ukrainian context, this is fundamental: his first cultural environment was precisely Galician, Drohobych, multinational.

He grew up in a poor Jewish family.

According to Ukrainian sources, Lilien’s father was a craftsman, a carver, or a turner. The family did not have money for a full gymnasium, so the future artist received primary education in a Jewish real school. It was already clear then that he had artistic abilities.

His first practical skills were not acquired in an academy but in a craft.

Young Lilien worked as an apprentice to a master who dealt with signs and shields. This is an important detail: his path to art began not with salons but with applied urban graphics — letters, lines, decorative forms, signs, the visual language of the street. Later, the sense of line and poster expressiveness would become one of the strong sides of his style.

In 1889, at about 15 years old, Lilien went to study at the Krakow School / Academy of Arts. There he studied painting and graphic techniques until 1893, including under Jan Matejko, one of the greatest artists of the Polish historical school. This stage is still connected with the Galician cultural space: Krakow was then an important artistic center for youth from Galicia.

Due to a lack of money, studies were not calm and continuous. Encyclopedic materials note that financial difficulties forced Lilien to return home and earn as a sign artist.

According to the “Encyclopedia of Modern Ukraine,” in 1892–1894, he worked in Drohobych, and later he repeatedly visited and worked in Lviv — in 1894, 1899–1905, 1911, 1914, and 1923.

Thus, Lilien’s Ukrainian period is not only a fact of birth in Drohobych.

It is childhood in Jewish Galicia, early craft school, first earnings, studies in the Krakow artistic environment, and constant returns to the Lviv-Drohobych region. Only later will there be Munich, Berlin, Basel, Herzl, “Bezalel,” and Jerusalem. But the basis of his view — the urban line, Jewish memory, Galician multilingualism, and the sense of cultural borderland — was formed precisely here.

This biography is similar to the path of many talented people from Galicia: first a provincial town, then a craft, then an art school, then major European centers. But Lilien did not dissolve in the European environment. On the contrary, it was there that he turned the Jewish theme into a modern artistic language.

He worked in the aesthetics of Art Nouveau, or Jugendstil — European modernism at the turn of the 19th–20th centuries. It was a style of decorative line, symbols, elongated figures, ornaments, strong black-and-white contrast, and almost musical rhythm of composition. But for Lilien, modernism was not just a beautiful form. Through it, he spoke of Jewish memory, exile, biblical past, national dignity, and hope for return.

His graphics were distinguished by a special tension. There was little accidental in them. The line could be soft and decorative, but the meaning often remained heavy: slavery, longing, expectation, spiritual resilience, the movement of people through history.

Lilien became known primarily as a book graphic artist, illustrator, and master of print graphics. His works existed not only in exhibition space. They appeared in books, magazines, albums, postcards, public projects — that is, they became part of mass visual memory. That is why his influence turned out to be broader than that of an artist working only for galleries.

How Lilien came to Zionism: Berlin, 1900, and the people around him

Lilien came to Zionism not through a party career but through the artistic and Jewish intellectual environment.

After studying in Krakow, Vienna, and Munich, he moved to Berlin in 1894. By the late 1890s, Lilien was already known in Berlin’s artistic and bohemian circles as a master of ex-libris, book, and magazine illustrator. At the same time, interest in the idea of “Jewish renaissance” — cultural renewal, which went alongside political Zionism, was growing in the German-speaking Jewish environment.

A key turning point was 1900 when the book “Juda” was published. The texts for it were written by the German poet Börries von Münchhausen, and the illustrations were created by Lilien. This book made him a notable figure among cultural Zionists: in it, Jewish antiquity was shown not as a museum past but as a source of strength, dignity, and national future.

It was after “Juda” that Lilien began to be actively perceived as an artist who could give the Jewish national movement its own visual language. His works were highly appreciated by representatives of cultural Zionism, including the circle of Martin Buber. Buber and cultural Zionists close to him saw in Lilien an artist capable of combining European modernism with the Jewish national idea.

An important figure next to Lilien was also Berthold Feiwel — a publicist, editor, one of the active figures of the Zionist movement. He was connected with circles where not only Herzl’s politics were discussed but also the need for new Jewish culture, literature, and art. Through such an environment, Lilien found himself not on the periphery but at the very center of cultural Zionism.

The next important date is 1901. Lilien participated in the Fifth Zionist Congress in Basel and joined the democratic-Zionist faction. It was there that he created the famous image of Theodor Herzl on the balcony of the Les Trois Rois hotel. This portrait became one of the visual icons of political Zionism.

Thus, Lilien’s connection with Zionism became obvious. He was not a politician like Herzl and was not an organizer of the movement in the usual sense. His role was different: he made Zionism visible. Herzl gave the movement a program and a political dream, and Lilien gave this dream a face, a line, a symbol, and emotional strength.

In 1903, another important publication was released — “Lieder des Ghetto” / “Songs of the Ghetto” by Morris Rosenfeld with illustrations by Lilien. These images of poverty, exile, pain, and hope were also used in Zionist visual culture. Through them, Lilien showed the old Jewish world but at the same time hinted at the need to escape humiliation and return to dignity.

A logical continuation was the work with Boris Schatz. In 1904, Lilien, together with him, engaged in the idea of creating a Jewish art school in Jerusalem. In 1905, a society related to the future “Bezalel” project was created in Berlin, and in 1906, Lilien, together with Schatz, came to Jerusalem, helped open the school, taught the first class, and participated in forming its visual direction.

Therefore, Lilien’s path to Zionism can be shown as follows:

1894 — Berlin: entry into Jewish artistic and intellectual circles.

1900 — “Juda”: the first major work after which he began to be perceived as an artist of Jewish national revival.

1901 — Basel: Fifth Zionist Congress, democratic-Zionist faction, famous image of Herzl.

1903 — “Songs of the Ghetto”: visual language of Jewish pain, exile, and hope.

1904–1906 — Boris Schatz and “Bezalel”: transition from European Zionist graphics to an attempt to create Jewish art in Jerusalem.

Thus, it becomes clear that Lilien did not “accidentally find himself next to Zionism.” He entered it through Berlin, through the circles of cultural Zionism, through Martin Buber, Berthold Feiwel, Boris Schatz, through the book “Juda,” the Basel Congress, and the image of Herzl. His contribution was not political but visual: he helped Zionism see itself.

Why Lilien is called the first Zionist artist

At the end of the 19th — beginning of the 20th century, Zionism was not only a political movement. It needed a language. Not only the language of speeches, programs, and congresses but also the language of images. What does Jewish return look like? How to present Zion to a person who has never seen Eretz-Israel? How to show not only the suffering of exile but also the dignity of a people who want to become the subject of their own history again?

Lilien gave this movement a strong visual form.

The National Library of Israel directly calls him “the first Zionist artist.” Materials about him emphasize that his turn to Zionist art is associated with the Fifth Zionist Congress.

It is important to understand: he did not “create Zionism.” Zionism as a political movement had its leaders, ideologists, organizers, congresses, and institutions. But Lilien helped make Zionism visible. He gave it faces, lines, symbols, poses, biblical depth, and modern artistic energy.

In his works, the Jew was no longer just an image of an exile or a victim. He could be a prophet, a warrior, a farmer, a thinker, a builder of the future. This was fundamentally important for an era when the Jewish national movement was trying to create a new image of itself.

In this sense, Lilien worked not just as an illustrator. He worked as an artist of national imagination.

Herzl in Basel: a portrait that became almost an icon

The most famous visual episode in Lilien’s biography is associated with Theodor Herzl.

In 1901, during the Fifth Zionist Congress in Basel, Lilien made the famous image of Herzl on the balcony of the Les Trois Rois hotel. Herzl stands by the railing and looks into the distance, at the Rhine. This photograph became one of the most recognizable images of political Zionism. The Jewish Museum of Switzerland describes it as a postcard with a reproduction of Ephraim Moses Lilien’s photograph “Theodor Herzl in Basel, 1901“.

The strength of this portrait is not only that it depicts Herzl. The strength is in the composition. He looks not like an ordinary congress participant but like a person looking into the future. In this image, there is loneliness, a prophetic pose, anxiety, and confidence at the same time.

And here it is important to remember: one of the main visual symbols of the Zionist movement is associated with an artist from Drohobych.

Lilien did not just press the camera button. He knew how to see the symbol. He understood how to create an image of an era from a real person. That is why Herzl on the balcony became more than a portrait. It became a visual formula for the dream of a Jewish future.

There is another important detail. Lilien often used Herzl’s features as a model for the image of the “new Jew.” In Herzl, he saw not only a politician but also a type of face that could be turned into an artistic sign of national revival.

Main works of Lilien: from “Juda” to “Songs of the Ghetto”

Lilien is known not for one work. His legacy includes book graphics, biblical illustrations, Zionist symbols, photographs, portraits, and projects related to Jewish culture at the beginning of the 20th century.

“Juda”: ancient history as an image of the future

One of Lilien’s key works was the 1900 edition of Juda — a book of ballads on Old Testament themes by the German poet Börries von Münchhausen with illustrations by Lilien. Encyclopedic sources note that it was this project that helped turn him into one of the main artists of the Zionist theme; the Israel Museum writes that the illustrations for this book almost immediately made Lilien an outstanding Zionist artist.

Why is this important?

Because in Juda, the ancient history of Israel was presented not as a dead past. It looked like a source of strength. Biblical characters in Lilien’s work were not museum figures. They were strong, monumental, almost modern. In them, a reader at the beginning of the 20th century could see not only a religious plot but also a national idea.

This was an important step: Jewish antiquity became the language of the future.

“Lieder des Ghetto”: the pain of exile and the dignity of the people

Another important project is Lieder des Ghetto, or “Songs of the Ghetto,” illustrations for the German translation of poems by Morris Rosenfeld. This cycle became one of the most famous in Lilien’s legacy. It features themes of poverty, labor, exile, suffering, social pain, and hope.

For the Ukrainian context, there is an additional bridge here. Morris Rosenfeld was a Jewish poet writing in Yiddish, and Ivan Franko translated his texts into Ukrainian. Therefore, around “Songs of the Ghetto,” an amazing cultural connection arises: Jewish poetry, a world-class Ukrainian translator, and an artist from Drohobych who creates strong visual images for these motifs.

This does not mean that Franko and Lilien worked together on one project. But it shows how close intellectual and artistic intersections could be in the Eastern European Jewish-Ukrainian space.

Biblical illustrations: the past as the energy of return

Lilien worked a lot with biblical plots. He was interested in prophets, patriarchs, exodus, land, exile, struggle, spiritual mission. In such works, he did not just illustrate the text. He created an image of Jewish history as a continuous line leading from antiquity to modern national awakening.

Researchers note that in Lilien’s biblical graphics, the past is often presented as majestic and alive, resonating with the ideas of spiritual and artistic revival.

In his work, a biblical hero could look like a person already belonging to the modern world. This was Lilien’s special strength: he did not leave Jewish history in the past. He translated it into the language of his time.

Images worth remembering

Among the well-known works and motifs of Lilien, “The Queen of Sabbath,” “The Silent Song,” “Zion,” images of the victims of the Kishinev pogrom, biblical scenes with Abraham, Joshua, Balaam, and other characters are often mentioned. In these works, it is visible how the artist combined the decorativeness of modernism with heavy historical memory.

His art was beautiful but not easy.

Lilien and “Bezalel”: from Drohobych to Jerusalem

Another important chapter is Lilien’s connection with Jerusalem and the “Bezalel” art school.

In 1906, he, together with Boris Schatz, was involved in the creation of the “Bezalel” Academy of Arts and Design in Jerusalem. The National Library of Israel notes Lilien’s participation in the trip to Eretz-Israel with Schatz and associates him with the school’s emblem.

Yes, his stay in Jerusalem was not long. But even short participation had symbolic significance. Lilien found himself next to one of the first institutional projects of Jewish art education in Eretz-Israel.

This was a path that beautifully fits into one line: Drohobych gave him a start, Krakow and Munich — a school, Berlin — an artistic scene, Basel — a Zionist symbol, Jerusalem — a connection with future Israeli art.

For the Israeli audience, this line is especially important. Lilien was not just a “Jewish artist from Europe.” He was one of those who helped form the visual ground on which the art of Eretz-Israel and Israel later developed.

Ukrainian trace: why Lilien is important not only to Israel

In the Ukrainian perspective, Lilien is important as part of the multinational heritage of Galicia.

He was born on the territory of modern Ukraine. His early environment — Drohobych, Galicia, the Jewish community, the Austro-Hungarian cultural world. His path shows that Ukrainian land gave the world people who influenced not only local history but also world culture.

Such biographies are especially important today when Ukraine is rethinking its own complex memory. Russian propaganda has been trying for decades to simplify Ukrainian history, presenting it as flat, secondary, or artificial. But stories like Lilien’s biography show the opposite: Ukraine was and remains a space of many cultural lines.

Here lived and created Ukrainians, Jews, Poles, Armenians, Greeks, Germans, Crimean Tatars, and other peoples. Their heritage does not cancel Ukrainian identity. On the contrary, it shows its depth.

Lilien is not a “foreign” figure for Ukrainian memory. He is a Jewish artist from Drohobych, a son of Galicia, a person whose biography connects a Ukrainian city with Berlin, Basel, and Jerusalem.

For NANovosti — News of Israel | Nikk.Agency, such stories are especially important because they help see Ukrainian-Israeli connections not only through diplomacy, war, and politics but also through a deeper layer — memory, culture, art, family roots, and the shared history of the Jewish people in Ukraine.

Lilien, Franko, Lesya Ukrainka: invisible cultural threads

In recent years, Lilien’s name in Ukraine is increasingly spoken of not only as a Zionist artist but also as a figure that can be placed alongside Ukrainian intellectual pursuits at the turn of the 19th–20th centuries.

Here an interesting connection arises: Lilien, Ivan Franko, Lesya Ukrainka.

At first glance, these are different worlds. Franko — a Ukrainian writer, thinker, translator, and public figure. Lesya Ukrainka — one of the key figures of Ukrainian literature, author of dramatic and poetic texts about freedom, strength of spirit, captivity, dignity, and resistance. Lilien — a Jewish graphic artist associated with modernism and Zionism.

But if you look deeper, there are indeed “invisible threads” between them.

All three lived in an era when the peoples of Eastern Europe were searching for the language of their own dignity. All three worked differently with themes of freedom, national awakening, historical memory, spiritual strength, and resistance to humiliation. For Franko, it was word and thought. For Lesya Ukrainka — dramatic energy and inner freedom. For Lilien — line, image, symbol, the face of a new person.

It is especially interesting that Lilien and Franko meet through the theme of Morris Rosenfeld. Lilien illustrated “Songs of the Ghetto,” and Franko translated Rosenfeld into Ukrainian. This is one of those cultural bridges that are rarely visible in school textbooks but are important for understanding the true depth of the Ukrainian-Jewish space.

What image of a Jew did Lilien create

Before the era of Zionism, European art often depicted Jews through an outsider’s view. These could be stereotypes, religious caricatures, images of poverty, alienation, or exoticism. Lilien offered a different image.

In his work, the Jew is not an object of someone else’s observation but a subject of his own history.

He can suffer but does not disappear. He can be an exile but does not lose dignity. He can remember destruction but look forward. He is connected with the Bible but does not get stuck in the past. He is modern, strong, beautiful, tragic, and aimed at return.

This is the essence of his Zionist graphics.

Lilien did an important thing: he visually restored the dignity of the Jewish body, the Jewish face, the Jewish memory. His heroes often look monumental. They possess a strength that was so lacking in European stereotypes of the ‘weak’ or ‘landless’ Jew.

Therefore, his works were important not only as art. They participated in the creation of a new self-perception.

Why Lilien is important for Israel today

For Israel, Ephraim Moshe Lilien is part of the early cultural history of Zionism. He lived before the creation of the State of Israel but worked with images that helped make this future imaginable, visible, and emotionally convincing.

Herzl gave Zionism a political language. Congress organizers gave it structure. Settlers and builders gave it practical form on the ground. And artists like Lilien gave it a face.

Without images, a national movement remains a program. With images, it becomes part of memory.

That is why Lilien is important not only to art historians. He is important to everyone who wants to understand how the Jewish idea of return became not only a text but also a picture, a symbol, a postcard, an emblem, an illustration, a portrait.

He is also important because his biography reminds us: part of Israel’s cultural roots pass through the cities of modern Ukraine — through Drohobych, Lviv, Odessa, Chernivtsi, Kyiv, Zhytomyr, Uman, Berdychiv, and many other places.

Why Lilien is important for Ukraine today

For Ukraine, Lilien is part of a reclaimed memory.

For a long time, many Jewish names associated with Ukrainian cities were perceived separately: as the history of ‘Jews of Eastern Europe,’ but not as part of the Ukrainian cultural landscape. Today, such an approach no longer works. If a person was born in Drohobych, studied, formed in the Galician environment, absorbed its multilingualism, and then influenced world art, it is impossible to erase him from the Ukrainian cultural map.

Lilien helps Ukraine speak about itself more honestly and deeply.

Not as a monotonous territory where there was only one line of history, but as a complex European space where different peoples created a common cultural fabric. This is especially important during the war when Ukraine defends not only its territory but also its right to its own memory.

Russia tries to destroy Ukrainian cities, erase archives, kill people, destroy cultural symbols, and impose an imperial version of the past. In response, Ukraine reclaims names, places, languages, and destinies that prove: its history is much richer than any imperial schemes.

Ephraim Moshe Lilien is one of those names.

Finale: an artist from Ukraine who helped the Jewish people see themselves

Ephraim Moshe Lilien lived only 51 years. But his path turned out to be surprisingly rich. He was born in Drohobych, went through European art schools, became a master of modernism, joined the circle of Jewish intellectuals and Zionists, created iconic illustrations, photographed Herzl in Basel, and was connected with the artistic beginnings of Jerusalem.

He was called the first Zionist artist not because he was the only one. But because he was one of the first to give the Jewish national revival a coherent artistic image.

Lilien helped the Jewish people see themselves not only through the pain of exile but also through dignity, beauty, strength, memory, and hope.

And in this, there is a special Ukrainian note. One of the artists who created the face of early Zionism was born in Ukrainian Drohobych. His line went from Galicia to Basel and Jerusalem. Therefore, his name rightfully belongs to several stories at once — Jewish, Ukrainian, European, and Israeli.

For the section ‘Jews from Ukraine‘, Ephraim Moshe Lilien is not just the biography of an outstanding artist. It is proof that Ukrainian land gave the Jewish world people who changed not only the culture of their time but also how an entire people envisioned their own future.

Man-bridge: Drohobych — Berlin — Basel — Jerusalem — Braunschweig

The biography of Ephraim Moshe Lilien is most accurately described not by a straight line ‘Drohobych — Jerusalem,’ but by a route through several cultural centers: Drohobych, Berlin, Basel, Jerusalem, and Braunschweig.

Lilien was born on May 23, 1874, in Drohobych — then it was Galicia within Austria-Hungary, today the Lviv region of Ukraine. It was there that the path of the artist began, who would later become one of the main visual authors of early Zionism.

After his first steps in the craft and studies in Krakow, his road went through Vienna, Munich, and Berlin. In 1894, Lilien moved to Berlin, where he became known as a book graphic artist, illustrator, photographer, and master of modernism.

A key date is 1901. During the Fifth Zionist Congress in Basel, Lilien created the famous image of Theodor Herzl on the balcony of the hotel Les Trois Rois. This portrait became one of the visual icons of political Zionism.

In 1906, Lilien found himself in Jerusalem and was associated with the early history of the Bezalel School of Arts, created by Boris Schatz. He did not just ‘visit’ Eretz Israel: Lilien participated in launching a new Jewish art school, taught the first class, helped set its visual direction, and, according to the National Library of Israel, created the design of the Bezalel emblem.

His task was not only pedagogical. Lilien helped connect biblical plots, the Zionist idea of return, and the language of European modernism. Through him, early Bezalel received not just a curriculum but an artistic idea: Jewish art should speak of the past but look to the future.

In Eretz Israel, he also worked as a photographer. In 1906, Lilien photographed Jerusalem, the country’s inhabitants, types, and scenes around the new school: among the known subjects are a Yemenite Jew, Samaritan high priest Amram ben Yitzhak, an Arab figure in an abaya, as well as the Bezalel drawing class. This is important: Lilien looked at the country not only as a Zionist artist but also as a visual witness of the era.

However, Jerusalem did not become his permanent home. Already in 1907, Lilien returned to Berlin but continued to visit Palestine. Sources usually indicate that between 1906 and 1918 he was there four times. One of the subsequent trips was related to World War I: Lilien served in the Austrian military press corps as a war photographer.

In the same 1906, he married Helene Magnus from a Jewish family in Braunschweig. Therefore, after his death on July 18, 1925, in Badenweiler, Lilien was buried not in Jerusalem but in the Jewish cemetery in Braunschweig.

Thus, his map looks briefly: Drohobych, 1874 — Berlin, 1894 — Basel, 1901 — Jerusalem, 1906 — Palestine, trips until 1918 — Braunschweig, 1925.

Drohobych gave him roots, Europe — an artistic language, Basel — a place next to Herzl, Jerusalem — a connection with Bezalel, and Braunschweig became the last point of his earthly journey.

Ephraim Moshe Lilien is buried in the New Jewish Cemetery in Braunschweig, Germany, next to his wife Helene. His tombstone is made based on his own illustration ‘Cemetery’ / ‘Friedhof’ for Morris Rosenfeld’s book ‘Lieder des Ghetto.’ In this illustration, Lilien depicted a tombstone with his name in advance — and after his death, this artistic image was brought to reality.

Read more – in the section ‘Jews from Ukraine‘.

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Author: Lev Varshavsky

The announcement appeared on the official MAK_UA Facebook page. The organizers address the Ukrainian community in Israel with an invitation to save the dates in their calendars in advance and promise a meeting with the magical “Divosvit” — a fairy-tale world of adventures, unusual heroes, and festive wonders.

Ticket sales are expected to start later. While MAK_UA is gradually revealing the program, viewers have the opportunity to get acquainted with the new project and decide in which city it will be more convenient for them to attend the performance.

Three cities, two announced dates, and festive fairs

Haifa — Tuesday, December 29, 2026. Doors will open at 17:00, a New Year’s fair will start, and the “Rivnovaha” project will prepare entertainment for guests. The performance will begin at 18:00. Thus, the organizers offer not to limit themselves to the theater hall but to spend the whole festive evening together.

Tel Aviv — Saturday, January 2, 2027. Here, guests are also expected from 17:00. Before the performance, there will be a fair, and children will be able to interact with fairy-tale fairies. The performance itself will begin at 18:00. For families with children, this hour before the start of the action can become a separate part of getting to know the characters and the atmosphere of the production.

Ashdod — the city is listed in the official graphic poster of the performance. However, in the latest text announcement from MAK_UA, the exact date, time, and place of the Ashdod show have not yet been specified. Viewers from Ashdod and southern regions of Israel should follow updates on the official page of the organizers, where further details are expected to be published.

The story with the schedule clarification is not accidental. Back in September, NAnovosti reported on the large calendar of MAK_UA events for the second half of 2026. At that time, the New Year’s family fairy tale was tentatively planned for the period from December 15 to 30 in three cities — Haifa, Tel Aviv, and Ashdod. Now specific dates for two shows have appeared, and the Tel Aviv performance will take place after the New Year.

Exact addresses of the halls, ticket prices, performance duration, and age recommendations have not yet been published. The possibility of translation or subtitles for viewers who do not speak Ukrainian is also not specified. The organizers should provide all these details separately.

Who is Queen Anna and what does the Tree of Memory hide

At the center of the new production is Queen Anna. Next to her in the title appears the Tree of Memory, and the promotional poster shows a huge fairy-tale oak, the queen in a festive blue dress, mysterious characters, and a castle against a magical landscape.

In the very combination of the name and title, it is easy to see a historical association with Anna of Kiev, also known as Anna Yaroslavna. In the 11th century, the daughter of the Kyiv prince Yaroslav the Wise became the queen of France by marrying Henry I in 1051. After her husband’s death, she participated in the affairs of the French royal court during the minority of her son Philip I.

For Israeli readers unfamiliar with the history of medieval Eastern Europe, it is useful to explain here: Anna came from Kievan Rus, a state centered in Kyiv that existed long before the formation of modern Ukraine, Russia, and Belarus. In Ukrainian cultural memory, Anna of Kiev occupies a special place as a symbol of the old historical ties between Kyiv and European royal courts.

At the same time, MAK_UA has not yet reported that the heroine of the play is the historical Anna Yaroslavna. The similarity of the name allows for a possible association, but not a confirmed plot. The authors call their work an original fantasy fairy tale, and the details of its story remain unknown.

The meaning of the Tree of Memory is also not revealed. It may become a magical object, a place of action, or an image connecting generations and family memories. But these are only possible interpretations of the title, not information from the published script.

For families where children grow up between Ukrainian and Israeli cultures, the theme of memory sounds especially recognizable. Family stories here often cross several countries, languages, and eras. And although it is not yet known what content the creators have put into their fairy tale, its very title already raises questions that may be of interest to viewers of different generations.

MAK_UA: Ukrainian theater created in Israel

Behind the performance is MAK_UA — Ukrainian Artistic Amateur Forge in Israel. This is a Ukrainian public-artistic association created by Marina Kadatska (Марина Кадацька), a teacher and actress who has lived in Israel for many years.

In an interview with the project “Ukrainian Meetings in Israel,” presented by NAnovosti, Marina talked about her move, the formation of Ukrainian cultural identity, and why there was a need to create a Ukrainian-language theater here in Israel.

At the time of the interview in 2023, MAK_UA was a completely volunteer project. Actors, screenwriters, directors, and representatives of other creative professions united around the idea. The collective conducted workshops, created puppet shows, and worked on children’s performances, including “The Tale of Nicholas” and the interactive “Spring-Meeting Tale.”

Later, new productions, meetings, and educational programs appeared. One of them is “Theater Therapy,” where participants get acquainted with the history of Ukrainian theater through stage exercises, improvisation, and voice work.

In the MAK_UA calendar for October 8, 2026, the sixth meeting of the third season of “Theater Therapy” was planned, dedicated to the development of modern Ukrainian theater. Such classes do not require participants to have professional acting education: the theater here exists not only for spectators but also for people who want to try themselves on stage.

Over several years, the association has become a noticeable part of Ukrainian cultural life in Israel. At the same time, it is not about a touring troupe that came for a few days from Ukraine, but about a creative collective that works within the country itself.

NAnovosti — News of Israel | Nikk.Agency has repeatedly reported on its projects. They are interesting not only for preserving the Ukrainian language: performances become a meeting place for people who were born in Ukraine, have long lived in Israel, or are getting to know Ukrainian culture for the first time thanks to friends and neighbors.

From the adventures of Mykola to Malanka: what fairy tales MAK_UA has already shown

The new “Queen Anna” continues the theatrical tradition that MAK_UA has been forming for several years.

In December 2024, the collective prepared a Ukrainian-language New Year’s fairy tale “The Adventures of Mykola in the Fairy Forest”. The performances were planned in Haifa, Rishon LeZion, and Ashdod. NAnovosti detailed this production, aimed at children and parents.

A year later, a new work appeared — “The Tale of Malanka and the Evil Snake”. It was presented in December 2025 as part of MAK_UA’s winter performances in Tel Aviv, Haifa, and Ashdod.

Malanka is a heroine of Ukrainian winter folk tradition, associated with rituals, songs, disguises, and fun performances. For the Israeli audience, this is not a familiar character from children’s books, but part of a special festive culture preserved in Ukraine for centuries. In the fairy tale, she was opposed by the Snake — a fictional image created in the spirit of Ukrainian folklore.

The performance featured six fairy-tale characters. The design used works by Ukrainian masters of decorative and applied arts, original music by a Ukrainian composer, and elements of Carpathian aesthetics. The Carpathians are a mountain region in western Ukraine and neighboring countries of Central Europe, where rich traditions of folk crafts, music, and festive rituals have developed.

The organizers promised children gifts and photos with the characters after the performance, and the festive program was accompanied by a fair of Ukrainian goods. Part of the proceeds from ticket sales was planned to be directed to support the Armed Forces of Ukraine.

About the production, its plot, and the conditions of attendance can be read in the previous NAnovosti article about the tale of Malanka.

It cannot yet be asserted that all these elements will be repeated in the new “Queen Anna.” Neither gifts, nor the charitable part of ticket sales, nor the number of characters for the 2026–2027 performance have been separately announced. But previous works show how MAK_UA combines stage action with cultural and festive programs.

“Rivnovaha” in Haifa: more than entertainment before the performance

A special role in the Haifa show will be played by the project “Rivnovaha” (“Balance”) — a Ukrainian public-cultural initiative working with children and adults. It is known in Haifa for creative meetings, classes, cultural holidays, and events that help people find communication and emotional support.

One of the participants in organizing such events is Tal Mikhaelenko. Together with the “Rivnovaha” team, she participated in preparing events that combined Ukrainian and Israeli cultural traditions.

In February 2025, NAnovosti reported on the celebration of Tu BiShvat in Haifa, organized with the participation of “Rivnovaha.” Tu BiShvat is the Jewish New Year of Trees, celebrated on the 15th of the month of Shevat. In Israel, it is associated with traditions of planting trees, caring for nature, and introducing children to the plant world of the country.

At that time, the program combined music, creative activities, reading Ukrainian books, games, meditative practices, and children’s gifts. Among the participants was “Pizhamna Bibliotechka” — an initiative introducing children to books through reading and joint creativity.

In May of the same year, “Rivnovaha” held in Haifa “Vyshyvanka Day. Epilogue”. Vyshyvanka is a traditional Ukrainian embroidered shirt, long recognized as a symbol of national culture. The program included music, creative workshops, and separate activities for children.

In the summer of 2026, the children’s direction “Rivnovaha.Dity” participated in organizing the meeting “Picturesque World” — an artistic event for children in Haifa, prepared jointly with “Pizhamna Bibliotechka.”

Therefore, the invitation of “Rivnovaha” to the performance on December 29 looks like a natural continuation of joint cultural work. But the specific set of entertainment before “Queen Anna” has not yet been disclosed by the organizers. It remains to wait for the detailed program of the fair.

Who supports the new production

The graphic poster of “Queen Anna” features not only theatrical characters and cities of the performance but also organizations supporting the project.

In the section of informational support are listed the Embassy of Ukraine in the State of Israel, Created in Ukraine, Historical Arsenal, “We Together,” Israeli Friends of Ukraine, and Help People Group.

Among the partners on the poster are SHO?, n.th.ng, and Disco Ukraina.

Such a composition reflects the participation in Ukrainian cultural life in Israel not only of theatrical collectives but also of public initiatives, volunteer associations, and representatives of local business.

For MAK_UA, this is another way to attract different communities to their projects. Moreover, the support of Ukrainian culture in Israel has long not been limited to organizations with the word “Ukraine” in their names. Events involve people of different origins, united by an interest in theater, history, music, and cultural exchange.

Why Ukrainian fairy tales find their audience in Israel

Israel has its own festive calendar, which does not coincide with the familiar December and January dates for many immigrants from Ukraine. The Jewish New Year, Rosh Hashanah, is celebrated in the fall, and January 1 is not a national holiday.

Nevertheless, for many families who have moved from Ukraine and other European countries, the end of December remains a time for family gatherings, gifts, and children’s performances. And Ukrainian theater is gradually finding its place in this calendar.

The situation with children is especially interesting. Many of them study in Israeli schools, speak Hebrew with friends, watch Israeli shows, and gradually switch to the language of the country they live in. Ukrainian often remains the language of communication with parents, grandparents.

At the performance, everything is arranged differently. Ukrainian is not only spoken at home: fairy-tale characters speak it, joke, sing, and tell stories. For a child, this is an opportunity to see their native language as part of a live cultural event. And for adults, to spend an evening in an environment where family memories do not need to be translated and explained every time.

Equally important, such performances can be interesting to Israelis without Ukrainian roots. Getting to know the culture of neighbors through a children’s fairy tale is sometimes more accessible than official meetings and solemn speeches. However, for families who do not speak Ukrainian, the possibility of attendance will also depend on whether the organizers provide language support.

Tickets, addresses, and updates: what viewers need to know

As of October 12, 2026, MAK_UA has published the name of the performance, named three cities on the poster, and announced exact dates for performances in two of them.

Haifa — December 29, 2026: doors open and New Year’s fair at 17:00, performance at 18:00. The festive program includes the “Rivnovaha” project.

Tel Aviv — January 2, 2027: doors open, fair, and meeting with fairies at 17:00, performance starts at 18:00.

Ashdod — the show is announced on the poster, but the exact date and time have not yet been published. Residents of Ashdod are advised to follow subsequent announcements from the organizers. The date of December 31 indicated on the graphic poster cannot yet be unequivocally linked to this city.

Ticket sales have not yet started. Information on prices, exact venue addresses, duration, and age recommendations should appear additionally.

The main source of updates is the official MAK_UA Facebook page. There, the organizers promise to announce the start of ticket sales and publish further details.

For now, viewers can only choose a convenient city and save the announced dates. And those living in Ashdod should wait a bit: the city has already appeared on the poster of the new fairy tale, it remains to wait for the specific schedule.

MAK_UA still has several months of preparation ahead. The names of the performers, plot details, hall addresses, and ticket links will appear. But one important thing is already known: the Ukrainian theater is once again going to celebrate the New Year with its audience in Israel — and this tradition continues.

Photo project by Israeli photographer Olga Savinadedicated Ukrainian women in Israelbecame not only a way to preserve cultural heritage, but also a bridge between two peoples.

Models dressed in traditional Ukrainian costumes pose against the backdrop of Israeli cities, creating a visual story that unites past and present.

“I would like to do a series of filming about Ukrainian women in Israel.

Images that unite past and present.

Models dressed in regional costume (costumes typical of the regions they came from) against the backdrop of the cities where they now live.” – Olga Savina says.

Project concept: past and present

The idea for the photo project was born from Olga’s personal interest in traditional Ukrainian clothing. She researches, collects and restores regional costumes to preserve the memory of her culture.

The costumes used in the project are either ancient outfits that are over a hundred years old, or their exact replicas. Every detail reflects the characteristics of a certain region of Ukraine, and the locations in Israel emphasize the contrast between the past and the present.

Filming locations: key points

Kiev region in Haifa.

Marina, originally from the Kiev region, now lives in Haifa. Her photo shoot took place against the backdrop of the iconic Bahai Gardens, one of the city's hallmarks. Marina's image includes elements of a traditional Kyiv costume, as well as an evacuation backpack – a symbol of forced relocation and changes faced by Ukrainians. The costume includes an embroidered shirt with an ornament characteristic of the Kiev region, a skirt and a belt. Every detail is recreated taking into account historical authenticity, which allows us to emphasize the beauty and significance of the traditions of the region.

Photo here

Polesie and skyscrapers of Ramat Gan

The photo shoot dedicated to Polesie was shot against the backdrop of the modern high-rise buildings of Ramat Gan, which creates a strong contrast between tradition and the urban landscape. This regional image tells about the rich history of Polesie and its natural features, reflected in the details of the costume. The basis of the costume is a plain linen shirt with woven red stripes on the sleeves. Characteristic features include a deep neckline, a short hem hidden under the skirt, and minimal embroidery reminiscent of weaving patterns. A fly skirt made of red homespun wool with thin vertical stripes is complemented by an apron with an ornament. The image is completed with red beads, hustka or namitka, as well as a woven belt, which girls tied on the left, and married women on the right.

Photo here

Odessa region in Netanya

A photo shoot dedicated to the Odessa region took place in Netanya and included a rare costume from the Kodymsky region. This outfit required careful restoration, but the result is impressive. The photographs demonstrate a deep connection with the cultural heritage and the uniqueness of the traditions of the region. The costume consists of a three-piece shirt with sleeves that gather at a wide cuff. The characteristic embroidery is located in the upper part of the sleeve in the form of two stripes – a wider and a narrower one. The ornaments, made in red and black tones, are decorated with small multi-colored beads. Over the shirt was worn a specially cut sundress with deep waffle folds and decorative elements on the back. The lower part of the sundress is decorated with horizontal folds and velvet ribbons. A wide belt with silk ribbons and a bright coral or glass necklace, typical of the region, complete the look.

Photo here

Vinnytsia region in Ashkelon

A photo session dedicated to the Vinnytsia region was held in Ashkelon. This regional costume from the Bershad region focuses on the connection of cultures and historical memory, uniting the past and present. The costume includes a shirt embroidered using the traditional “niz” technique with a characteristic Vinnytsia pattern. It is completed with a bib and skirt with a velvet ribbon typical of the region. The embroidery of the shirt is distinguished by geometric patterns that emphasize the status and skill of the needlewoman. The bib, popular specifically in the Bershad region, adds elements of elegance and symbolism to the image. Such an ensemble creates a powerful visual image that unites Ukrainian heritage and Israeli modernity.

Photo here

Poltava region to Jaffa

A photo session dedicated to the Poltava region took place in Jaffa, one of the most colorful districts of Tel Aviv. Against the backdrop of the narrow streets of the old city and historical architecture, a costume from the Poltava region looks especially bright, emphasizing the depth of Ukrainian tradition. The costume includes a calico (cotton) shirt with embroidery characteristic of the Poltava region. The shirt is made using the technique of planking and cross-stitching, with elements of the “broken branch” ornament that decorated the settings and sleeves. This pattern is complemented by eight-pointed stars and geometric elements, which adds symbolism to the outfit. The hem of the shirt is decorated with patterns made with black thread in the “Brocard roses” style. The whole ensemble is completed by a traditional knitted shirt with three pintucks and a lining characteristic of the region – strengthening the hem to add weight. This image creates a harmonious combination of traditional Ukrainian clothing with the spirit of a modern Israeli city.

Photo here

Luhansk region: a symbol of perseverance – in Haifa

The image dedicated to the Luhansk region has become a symbol of resilience and a reminder of the cultural identity of the region, most of which is today under temporary occupation. A photo shoot with the Luhansk system reflects the importance of preserving heritage even in conditions of war and change. The shirt, created on the basis of museum exhibits, has a traditional Poltava cut, but stands out with a characteristic combination of colors: red and blue. Designs include the tree of life, floral motifs on the sleeves and stripes of embroidery on the seams. The specific ornament is complemented by a replica of a box chintz sweater, decorated with velvet ribbons and wide folds at the bottom. The set of accessories includes traditional Lugansk ducats and “viper” beads, reproduced on the basis of museum photographs. The outer necklace is made of large amber beads, which is typical for jewelry in the Lugansk region. Against the backdrop of a waste heap and steppe landscapes, this outfit symbolizes the deep connection with the homeland and the fortitude of Ukrainian women.

Photo here

What makes the project unique?

The photo project stands out for its desire not only to preserve Ukrainian cultural heritage, but also to adapt it to Israeli reality.

Main accents:

• Costumes as carriers of history. Every detail, from embroidery to fabric, tells the story of the region and its people.
• Visual contrast. The combination of traditional outfits with modern Israeli architecture creates strong images.
• Uniting cultures. The project helps Ukrainian women find their place in a new country while maintaining contact with their roots.

A look at Jewish and Ukrainian culture

This photo project also symbolizes the connection between the Jewish and Ukrainian peoples. Israel, home to thousands of Ukrainian war survivors, provides a unique platform for dialogue between cultures.

“I have been studying the features of regional outfits for several months now. I started collecting costumes. I bought some, friends borrowed some for the project. The costumes are ancient, some are about a hundred years old, and replicas are close to the original.

I listen to a lot of lectures, I am fascinated by the diversity of traditions and how they were reproduced in embroidered shirts and the combination of elements of the regional “system”. It’s like the history of a region on a canvas, you can “read” it, it tells about the region and its owner.” – Olga Savina shares.

Our website NAnews – Israel News always pays attention to important initiatives that strengthen mutual understanding between peoples. This project is a great example of how art helps build cultural bridges.

The Olga Savina project is more than just photo sessions. It is visual storytelling that preserves cultural heritage and builds bridges between nations.

About Olga Savina

Olga Savina — Children's and family photographer in Israel. She is from Kyiv. Now lives in Haifa.

“I photograph everything related to love. Love Story, weddings, pregnancy, newborns, children, families. I also shoot underwater – because I love the sea 🙂

Traveling around the world, I conduct photo sessions in the most beautiful corners of our planet. Israel is one of the most beautiful countries for me.

Finding new beautiful and unusual locations for shooting is my passion. You can view places for photo shoots in Israel in the corresponding section of my website.”

You can get to know each other better and even order a photo session here:

Facebook – https://www.facebook.com/olga.savina.94

Instagram – https://www.instagram.com/olga.savina.photo

Website – https://savinaphotos.com/

………………..

NAnews – Israel News will continue to talk about similar initiatives that strengthen the connection between Israel and Ukraine.

Every autumn, the city of Uman in the Cherkasy region of Ukraine becomes a place of pilgrimage for thousands of Jews from all over the world who come to celebrate Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year.

This event symbolizes not only a religious tradition, but also a deep historical connection between the Jewish people and the Ukrainian land. Many Jews, inspired by this tradition, settled in Uman, creating an entire microdistrict and gradually assimilating into the Ukrainian cultural environment, which emphasizes the long history of coexistence between Jews and Ukrainians.

Israeli philologist and cultural scientist, professor Wolf Moskovich, told in detail about significant Ukrainian-Jewish cultural ties, which are reflected even in surnames, many of which are of Ukrainian origin. For example, the surnames Ivankiv And Vannikov come from the name of the village of Ivanki, located near Uman, and Zavadivker – from the village of Zavadivka. Surname Macedonian originates from the village of Makedoni, located near Kanev.

Of particular interest are surnames with a clear Ukrainian flavor, such as The Bully Tail, Coward Head, Storcheus And Psuybumaga. Although they resemble the style characteristic of the Zaporizhian Sich Cossacks, Professor Moskovich emphasizes that Jewish surnames began to form steadily only at the beginning of the 19th century, when the Sich had already ceased to exist. Nevertheless, this fact testifies to the complex interweaving of Ukrainian and Jewish cultures, which together formed unique social and cultural structures.

Historical ties between Jews and Ukrainians are also confirmed by numerous toponymic Jewish surnames that originate from the names of settlements in Ukraine and Belarus. These surnames were formed similarly to the surnames of the Ukrainian, Belarusian and Polish gentry. In some cases, they even coincide with the gentry surnames of these peoples. The list of such surnames includes Lebedinsky, Mirgorodsky, Zhitomir, Belotserkovsky, Rakitnyansky, Potocki, Odessa, Chernobyl, Zhvanetsky, Koretsky, Brodsky and others. These surnames not only indicate a geographical connection, but also reflect the long history of coexistence of Jews on the territory of Ukraine.

In the 20th century, especially during the Soviet period, Jews had the opportunity to change their surnames, which was sometimes done to adapt to the local culture or for political reasons. Thus, Yiddish surnames could be calqued into Ukrainian analogues, for example: Bilan (from Weissman), Fisherman (from Fisher), Chervonenko (from Rothman), Chernenko (from Shvartsman) Such adaptation demonstrates the desire of Jews to integrate into Ukrainian society while preserving their roots.

A particularly interesting example of the Ukrainization of Jewish surnames is Pinchuk And Polischukwhich probably originated from surnames Pinsky And PoleskiyThis process testifies to the mutual influence and adaptation of cultures that lived side by side for many centuries.

The coexistence of Jews and Ukrainians has a long and sometimes complex history. Both nations have experienced periods of conflict and cooperation, but their shared cultural heritage continues to play a significant role in modern times. Jews began settling en masse in Ukraine in the Middle Ages, when the country was part of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania and then the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth. Their contribution to the economic and cultural development of the regions was significant. Over time, Jewish communities in Ukraine became increasingly influential, and many Jews participated in the social and cultural life of the country.

This coexistence is especially relevant in our time, when the world is on the threshold of change, and preserving cultural ties and the memory of centuries-old cooperation between peoples is becoming even more important.

Author: Alexander Khmelnitsky

The delegation includes specialists in environmental management and monitoring, teachers and researchers in land management, geodesy and cadastre, experts in legal support of water management, operation and repair of hydromelioration systems. Behind the latter name are quite specific structures: canals, pumping stations, drainage networks that supply water to fields or divert its excess. To restore such systems, it is not enough to bring a new pump — it is necessary to survey the area, check the land documents, and determine who is responsible for maintenance.

Course in Shefayim: program, duration, and participants

The official name of the course is “Sustainable Management of Water and Land Resources: Israeli Experience, Technologies, and Practical Solutions.” On the MASHAV website, it is listed under code 7322. Applications were accepted until September 15, and classes are conducted in Russian. The program is international, not only for Ukraine: candidates were required to have a relevant higher education and at least three years of professional experience.

Participants are introduced to methods of obtaining and processing water from traditional and non-traditional sources, methods of economical use, purification, and management of water supply in various sectors. Standard MASHAV programs often include visits to enterprises. However, it cannot be announced that the Ukrainian group has already visited certain desalination plants, as there is no published schedule of their trips yet.

According to the published MASHAV conditions, training, accommodation, meals, insurance, and educational trips are paid for by the organizer, while airfare is covered by the participant or sponsor. It was not reported who paid for the travel of these five individuals. The MATC center has been training foreign specialists since 1963; about 100 courses are held annually in the MASHAV system for approximately 2000 listeners. This is not the Haifa MASHAV training center named after Golda Meir.

What Ukraine can learn from Israeli water management

For Israelis, drip irrigation, desalination of seawater, and the company “Mekorot,” which manages a significant part of the national water infrastructure, are familiar. There is also “kolchin” (קולחין) — treated wastewater that is directed for irrigation instead of using drinking water. According to OECD data, Israel reuses more than 87% of treated wastewater, and about 94% of wastewater is collected and treated. According to the organization’s country profile, desalination provides over 40% of urban domestic water supply.

But transferring the Israeli scheme to Ukraine entirely will not work. There is different geography, a different climate, and large areas with damaged infrastructure. Drip irrigation is useless if water does not reach the field; a treatment plant requires electricity, consumables, and personnel. Desalination itself is energy-intensive and leaves a saline concentrate that requires control. Therefore, the program includes not only technologies but also resource management, legal and organizational issues.

This topic already arose in a publication by NANews about the speech of Ukrainian ecologist Leonid Bitsura at the MASHAV alumni meeting in Kyiv, which we wrote about in May 2025. He spoke about Israeli approaches to economical water use and the need to change Ukraine’s water policy.

Cooperation began before the current trip

As early as April 2021, representatives of Ukraine and Israel discussed the training of specialists and the application of Israeli irrigation technologies in southern Ukraine. In September 2022, MASHAV training on water management was completed by employees of the State Agency of Water Resources of Ukraine and the relevant professional development center. The diploma ceremony was attended by the Ambassador of Ukraine to Israel, Yevgeny Korniychuk. These are confirmed negotiations and courses, but not proof of the implementation of all discussed projects.

Assistance was not limited to lectures. In July 2025, the Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced the supply of drinking water systems to areas of Ukraine affected by Russian shelling. In October, equipment was received by the Kyiv Regional Clinical Hospital. On December 22, Israel and MASHAV transferred a water purification unit for a school, kindergarten, and neighboring houses in Vorzel near Kyiv. In the report of the Israeli embassy for 2022–2026, ten water purification kits with a design capacity of up to 100,000 people each are listed. This is a technical specification, not the number of people already receiving water.

Other figures are also provided: more than 3000 participants in online seminars and 250 specialists trained in Israel. They relate to several areas, including psychological assistance and rehabilitation, not exclusively to the water sector.

The separate scale of the problem became apparent after the destruction of the Kakhovka dam on June 6, 2023. The reservoir on the Dnipro supplied water to settlements and irrigation systems in southern Ukraine. According to the UN Environment Program, the environmental consequences of the disaster may be felt for decades. Against this backdrop, specialists in land management and repair of water facilities are needed no less than specialists in water purification.

The names of all five participants and the institutions they represent have not yet been disclosed; there are also no confirmed agreements on new projects specifically as a result of this course. It will end on November 12, and then it will be possible to assess the specific results of the training.

Author: Elena Gunko

Today in NAnews’s regular series “Jews from Ukraine,”

we tell the story of Sonia Delaunay, a world-famous artist whose remarkable life connected Ukraine, Jewish history, and France. We do not claim to be producing an academic study: we are simply interested in people like her and their lives, so we gather facts from publicly available sources and tell their stories in accessible, popular-science journalism — please do not judge us too harshly.

She left her family home in Ukraine while still a child and spent most of her life in France. But the origins that could seem like a distant memory in peacetime Paris became a threat to her life during the Holocaust.

In art history, Sonia Delaunay is one of the pioneers of European abstract painting, an artist who changed how people thought about colour, fashion, and design. In the history of Ukrainian Jewry, she is also Sarah Stern — the daughter of an Odessa factory manager and a woman who, in her final years, had to ask for help from Soviet Odessa.

Recently published archival research has brought back stories that were barely told for decades: what happened to her parents, their visits to France, her correspondence with her mother, and the tragedy of her younger brother, who died within the Soviet system of political repression.

Odessa, 1885: Where Sarah Stern Came From

Sarah Stern was born on November 14, 1885, according to today’s calendar. Her parents, Elya (also known as Ilya) Stern and Khana Terk, were a Jewish couple living in what is now Ukraine, then part of the Russian Empire.

For a long time, even the future artist’s birthplace was disputed.

Most older biographies identify Hradyzk, in Poltava Governorate — a small town now in Ukraine’s Poltava region. New York’s Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) still repeats this account.

The Centre Pompidou in Paris, however, gives Odessa as her birthplace.

The disagreement goes back to Delaunay’s own autobiography. In old age she recalled a place whose name was transcribed as Gradzihsk, as well as her father’s work in a factory. Later writers associated that name with Hradyzk and began listing it as the place of her birth.

Odessa researcher Yevgeny Demenok decided to check the story against documents rather than memories.

In the State Archive of the Odessa Region, he found a rabbinical register recording the marriage of Elya Stern and Khana Terk in May 1885, under the old calendar. The groom was 27 and the bride 22.

He then found entry No. 1173 in the Odessa rabbinate’s birth register, dated November 1, 1885, old style. It records the birth of Sarah, daughter of Elya Stern and Khana Terk.

In the Russian Empire, rabbinical registers were official records of Jewish births, marriages, and deaths. Their entries had a status comparable to civil-registration documents.

Another piece of evidence surfaced: a notarised document from St Petersburg dated 1908 that names Odessa as Sarah’s birthplace. The number of the rabbinical entry was recorded incorrectly, however, as 117 rather than 1173.

The Odessa account, then, rests on specific archival documents. Museum reference works still disagree, though, and that discrepancy should not be ignored.

By the early 1890s, the Stern family was still living in Odessa. The 1897 census lists their address as 28 Prokhorovskaya Street, apartment 9. They later lived at 8 Khersonskaya Street, apartment 26 — today’s Pasteur Street.

Sarah’s father worked in the metalworking industry. He later managed the production of tinplate and metal goods at a business owned by engineer M. G. Levin. Relatives remembered him as technically skilled and demanding, a man who had worked at the same enterprise for many years.

The family was not part of Odessa’s wealthy merchant class. But describing them as destitute would also be misleading: her father’s work, his professional standing, and the help the family received from relatives changed over time.

Sarah had brothers. Zeylik, born in 1888, died of scarlet fever at the age of five. Her younger brother Solomon was born on July 28, 1892. His fate would prove tragic.

Sarah was born into a world in which Jewish life was governed by special laws of the Russian Empire. Most Jews could not freely choose where to settle. The so-called Pale of Settlement covered much of present-day Ukraine, Belarus, Lithuania, and neighbouring territories; restrictions applied to permanent Jewish residence outside it.

Odessa was an important centre of Jewish trade, education, and culture. Yiddish, Russian, Ukrainian, French, and other languages crossed paths there, while traditional communal ties coexisted with the rapid modernisation of a major port city.

The future artist experienced that world for only part of her childhood.

At approximately five to seven years old, Sarah was sent to St Petersburg to live with her mother’s prosperous brother, Heinrich Terk, and his wife Anna.

Biographies often describe this as an adoption. Demenok, however, reached a different conclusion after examining family correspondence: Khana Stern did not consent to a formal adoption. The girl was brought up by relatives and used the surname Terk, but official documents continued to identify her as Sarah Stern for many years.

The difference went beyond legal status.

In her parents’ home, Sarah belonged to the family of a working Jewish employee. In St Petersburg, she entered a prosperous, cosmopolitan intellectual household surrounded by books, painting, music, and foreign languages.

Heinrich Terk was a well-known lawyer who also engaged in business, owned property, and collected paintings. He, too, was originally from Odessa, where he was born in 1847.

In her new home, the girl studied French, German, and English, travelled, and visited European museums.

Little by little, Sarah Stern became Sofia Terk — Sonia, the woman who would go on to change European art.

Her relationship with her birth mother, however, was difficult.

In August 1904, as she prepared to study in Germany, Sonia wrote in her diary that she had told her parents about her departure. She admitted that they felt almost like strangers and that she did not experience the closeness generally expected between parents and children.

These were the words of a nineteen-year-old. They tell us how she felt at the time, but they do not prove that the relationship stayed the same throughout her life.

The surviving letters tell a more complicated story.

Germany, Paris and Ukrainian Fabrics: How Sonia Delaunay Became an Artist

In 1904, Sonia went to Karlsruhe to study painting. She moved to Paris in 1905.

French art was going through a period of upheaval. Young artists were rejecting established ways of depicting space, experimenting with form and colour, and debating whether painting had to reproduce the visible world.

Sonia became fascinated by the work of Paul Gauguin, Henri Matisse, and the Fauves — artists who used bold, often unnatural colours for the expressive power of painting itself.

In 1908, she married the German art dealer Wilhelm Uhde. It was a marriage of mutual convenience that allowed her to maintain her independence in France. They later divorced.

By 1909, Sonia had grown close to the young French painter Robert Delaunay. They married in November 1910, and their son Charles was born on January 18, 1911.

The couple were looking for a new way to convey movement, light, and rhythm through colour.

A turning point came through an object that people do not usually think of as a masterpiece of the avant-garde.

Sonia stitched a patchwork blanket for her newborn son.

She later remembered seeing similar combinations of fabric scraps in Ukrainian peasant homes. Rectangles of different colours formed a composition unexpectedly close to the abstract experiments of European artists.

That blanket, known as Couverture de berceau, is held in the collection of the National Museum of Modern Art in Paris.

Both museum scholarship and Delaunay herself attest to its importance. Still, the folk patchwork blanket should not be treated as the sole source of her artistic breakthrough.

Alongside her Ukrainian memories, she drew on Cubism, French theories of colour contrast, her own observations, and her work with Robert.

Together, the Delaunays developed an approach known as Simultanism. Its basic idea can be explained without specialist art-history language: colours placed next to one another affect each other, changing how we perceive brightness, movement, and space.

Red beside green seems more intense; contrasting colours create visual tension. For Delaunay, a painting no longer had to be a still representation of an object.

In 1913, the poet and art critic Guillaume Apollinaire used the term “Orphism” for a new type of abstract painting in which colour played a role of its own.

The name came from Orpheus, the figure from Greek mythology associated with music. The artists sought to achieve with colour something like what music achieves with sound.

That same year, Sonia and the poet Blaise Cendrars created an unusual book, “Prose of the Trans-Siberian and of Little Jehanne of France.”

A long sheet folding like an accordion combined poetry with a colourful composition. Readers did not simply follow the poem: their eyes took in the words, shapes, and movement of the coloured forms at the same time.

In 1914, Delaunay painted one of her best-known works, “Electric Prisms.” Its multicoloured circles, intersections, and arcs suggested the movement of light in a modern city.

Ukraine had not disappeared from her artistic world.

In her autobiography, Sonia recalled the bright clothes worn at village weddings, red and green fabrics, ribbons, sunflowers, and a blue sky. She associated these images with her earliest sense of pure colour.

The connection is also recognised by New York’s Museum of Modern Art — MoMA, which has examined her work in detail.

In Paris, Alexandra Exter — an artist closely associated with Kyiv and the Ukrainian avant-garde — also entered the Delaunays’ circle.

Exter travelled regularly between France and Ukrainian cities, took part in art exhibitions, and introduced fellow artists to new European movements.

Her contacts with the Delaunays became part of a wider exchange of artistic ideas between Paris and Kyiv.

Later, Sonia’s art moved far beyond painting.

She designed fabrics, dresses, theatre costumes, book covers, furniture, and interiors. Geometric compositions moved from canvases onto everyday objects.

This mattered enormously to the development of modern design. In practice, Sonia argued that art could exist outside a museum, too.

Letters Between Odessa and Paris: Family, Revolution and Helping Her Mother

For years, the story of Sonia Delaunay’s relationship with her birth family was told incorrectly.

Older publications claimed that after moving to St Petersburg, she never saw her mother again and had almost no contact with her father.

The archives tell a different story.

In early 1909, her younger brother Solomon came to Paris. He remained in France until the summer of 1911, saw his sister, worked, and corresponded with relatives.

Letters from their Aunt Anna ask how often Sonia visited her brother, how he was settling in, and what he intended to do. The correspondence suggests that Sonia even considered painting his portrait.

In 1910, her mother, Khana Stern, travelled to France.

A surviving letter from Solomon told his sister that their mother was coming and asked Sonia to join them. Other family documents confirm that Sonia did meet Khana on that occasion.

Her father, Elya Stern, also visited Paris in 1914. He met his daughter, Robert Delaunay, and their son Charles.

This fact came to light through a later archival discovery, published by Yevgeny Demenok in the Odessa almanac “Deribasovskaya — Rishelyevskaya” in 2026.

The family, then, did not exist only in the artist’s memories. Her parents visited her, knew her husband and son, and followed her successes.

The First World War changed the Delaunay family’s usual geography.

In 1914, Sonia and Robert were on the Iberian Peninsula. They spent most of the war years in Spain and Portugal.

Her father continued to write to her from Odessa. He asked about the family’s health, photographs of his grandson, and Sonia’s latest work.

In January 1917, he wrote that relatives had heard of an article about her in a Portuguese newspaper but had been unable to obtain a copy. In the same letter, he described Solomon’s military service and his award of the St George Cross, First Class, which made him a recipient of all four classes of the decoration.

The St George Cross was an award of the Russian Empire for personal bravery in military service. There were four classes for enlisted men and non-commissioned officers, and receiving all four was a major distinction.

The letters show that Sonia’s artistic achievements were discussed in her parents’ Odessa home while her brother was serving through the First World War.

Then came the Revolution of 1917.

After the Bolsheviks seized power and political conditions changed, Sonia lost income from property in St Petersburg that she had inherited.

There is no proof here that all her property was confiscated. What the documents establish is the end of the regular payments that had helped support the family in France.

Sonia began working more actively in commercial design.

In Madrid, she opened Casa Sonia, a business offering clothing, fabrics, and interior decoration. That experience would later help her establish her own business in Paris.

In October 1917, her father reported that he, too, was struggling financially and could no longer help his daughter.

It was the last letter from him preserved in the family archive.

Elya Stern died in Odessa in the spring of 1919. Details of his death only came to light through a letter from a woman who knew the family — someone we will return to later.

Regular correspondence between France and Odessa then broke off for several years.

Contact resumed in 1925. This time, Sonia’s main correspondent was her mother.

Khana Stern was now a widow. Life under Soviet rule had become difficult for her: money was short, her health was deteriorating, and assistance was hard to obtain.

A letter dated October 5, 1925, records a specific sum. Khana thanked Sonia for 18 rubles passed to her through an intermediary in Leningrad. The letter also states that the transfer was equivalent to 250 French francs at the time.

These sums cannot simply be converted into present-day shekels: currencies, purchasing power, and economic conditions have changed profoundly over the past century.

Khana explained that after Solomon’s arrest, a search of her home had resulted in the seizure of a letter from her daughter, taking Sonia’s Paris address with it. She had to ask acquaintances for help to re-establish contact.

She wrote of selling household possessions — pillows, chairs, whatever remained.

In November of that year, Khana received photographs of Sonia, Robert, and Charles. She studied her grandson’s face, saw a resemblance to the young daughter she remembered, and thanked Sonia for the money.

These family letters are more revealing than many later biographies.

Khana did not discuss her daughter’s importance to avant-garde painting. She wanted to know whether Sonia was well, what her grandson looked like, and whether another transfer might be possible.

In February 1928, Khana thanked her for 20 rubles. In the same letter, she described a serious heart attack.

In October 1929, Sonia sent ten dollars. Khana asked her to be more careful in future when writing the recipient’s name, because collecting the money had proved difficult.

Food parcels were also sent, but some were returned because Khana could not pay the Soviet customs duties.

Her illnesses grew more serious.

Doctors at an Odessa clinic wrote to Sonia about Khana’s heart problems, her inability to pay for treatment, shortness of breath, and generally poor condition.

By 1931, she could not always write her own letters.

One of the last letters, written by someone else at her request, said that she had broken her arm, suffered heart attacks, and had almost no access to treatment.

Her address was still the same: 8 Pasteur Street.

This is the last reliably traceable point in their correspondence. The available materials do not establish the exact date of Khana Stern’s death.

Researchers have not found Sonia’s replies, which may once have been kept in Odessa. We therefore know what her mother asked for and thanked her for, but cannot reconstruct the entire correspondence from both sides.

Khana’s story matters particularly because accounts of Jewish emigration tend to focus on the achievements of those who became famous.

Behind one person’s success, a family often remained in very different circumstances.

Sonia was building an international career, while her mother in Odessa sold her last belongings and waited for money from abroad.

Solomon Stern: The Famous Artist’s Brother Who Died in a Soviet Prison

Sonia’s younger brother Solomon was born in Odessa on July 28, 1892.

Yevgeny Demenok and researcher Anatoly Belogorsky reconstructed his biography by comparing family correspondence with records from the Soviet agencies responsible for political repression.

Before their work, so little was known about Solomon that some biographies of Sonia even described the members of her birth family incorrectly.

As a young man, Solomon lived and worked in France and became interested in political ideas.

After returning to Odessa, he served in the First World War. His military service earned him four St George Crosses.

But the revolution placed him on the opposite side from the Bolsheviks.

Solomon was associated with the Socialist Revolutionary Party, or SRs. It had been a major party in the Russian Empire, advocating agricultural reform and a socialist transformation of society. After the Bolsheviks took power, the SRs were gradually pushed out of legal politics and then subjected to repression.

On September 28, 1922, Solomon was arrested in Kyiv.

Imprisonment, exile, new restrictions, and new accusations followed. The record of his life includes the Solovetsky camp, northern regions of the Soviet Union, and Krasnoyarsk Krai.

Solovki is a group of islands in the White Sea, where one of the best-known early Soviet prison camps operated in the 1920s. Its history became part of the development of the later Gulag system.

Khana Stern’s letters show that she was deeply worried by her son’s arrests and received very little news of him.

Sometimes she referred to his “illness.” The archival context suggests that such language may have concealed another imprisonment or exile, matters that could have been dangerous to describe openly.

Solomon’s final years can be established much more precisely.

Researchers found his name in records of the victims of political repression in Krasnoyarsk Krai.

According to his investigative case file, Solomon Ilyich Stern died on September 19, 1937, in the prison hospital of the NKVD administration for Krasnoyarsk Krai.

The NKVD was the Soviet People’s Commissariat for Internal Affairs, an agency that also served as the political police. It was central to the mass arrests and repression of the Stalin era.

The documents give heart paralysis as the cause of death. Nothing in the available case file indicates that Solomon was executed by shooting. The accurate description is that he died in custody, after years of persecution and exile.

The circumstances of his death are grave enough in themselves. There is no need to invent a death by firing squad when the documented story is already tragic.

Solomon left a wife and daughter. Their later lives require separate research.

We do not know when Sonia learned of her brother’s death or whether she ever had access to records of his imprisonment.

Two members of one family saw their lives diverge sharply after the revolution.

The sister designed dresses for Paris and appeared at international exhibitions. The brother, decorated for bravery in the First World War, died in a Soviet prison hospital.

For readers in Israel, this is a story familiar from many family histories of people from Eastern Europe: emigration sometimes saved one branch of a family, while relatives who remained in the USSR endured wars, arrests, and years of separation.

Historical upheavals of comparable scale appear elsewhere in our “Jews from Ukraine” series. One example is the biography of Haim Kahane, a Jew from Galicia who took part in Ukrainian fighting for Lviv, lived through the Second World War, and later helped organise Israel’s first paratrooper units.

These are different lives, but they belong to a generation for whom state borders, armies, and political regimes changed faster than family memory.

The Holocaust in France: Why Sonia Delaunay Had to Conceal Her Origins

When German forces advanced on Paris in 1940, Sonia and Robert Delaunay left the capital for southern France.

Before the war, their home had been a well-known gathering place in the art world. Their acquaintances included members of the French avant-garde, Jewish artists and writers, and emigrants from Eastern Europe.

The war changed the position of many of them.

The American collector and philanthropist Solomon Guggenheim tried to help the Delaunays move to the United States. Robert’s health, however, deteriorated so badly that they could not make the journey.

Robert died of cancer in Montpellier on October 25, 1941.

Sonia was now a widow, and her Jewish origins placed her in particular danger.

After France’s defeat in 1940, the country was governed in part by the Vichy regime — the authoritarian government of Marshal Philippe Pétain, which collaborated with Nazi Germany. It pursued its own antisemitic policies, restricting Jewish rights, helping register Jews and strip them of property, and ultimately facilitating deportations.

Southern France was not initially under direct German occupation, but that did not make it safe for Jews. In November 1942, German forces occupied this territory as well.

After her husband’s death, Sonia lived in Grasse, a town in southern France best known today for its perfume industry.

Her friends included the artists Jean Arp, Sophie Taeuber-Arp, and Alberto Magnelli. They continued to work, making drawings and paintings together.

It would be wrong to describe Grasse simply as the site of Sonia’s years-long secret confinement. She remained among artists, moved around, and worked. Yet the danger arising from her background was real.

American scholar Gail Levin explores this period in detail in her article Threading Jewish Identity: The Sara Stern in Sonia Delaunay, published in the Journal of Modern Jewish Studies in 2016.

Levin cites accounts showing that people around Sonia knew she was Jewish. This made her fear persecution and the possible loss of her artworks.

One particularly dramatic episode dates to July 1944.

According to a biographical account by Axel Madsen, retold by Levin, Sonia was travelling through Toulouse towards Spain when she unexpectedly met her former husband Wilhelm Uhde in a café.

Both were stopped by officers of the Gestapo, Nazi Germany’s secret state police.

During the questioning, Sonia claimed to be a Russian Orthodox Christian. The officers asked her questions about Kyiv and Kharkiv to test how well she knew the region she came from.

What makes this account so striking is that Sonia’s Ukrainian background — something she remembered as a source of colour and artistic inspiration — could now become grounds for dangerous suspicion.

According to the biography, she managed to avoid arrest.

Wilhelm Uhde helped her find refuge with acquaintances near Grisolles, not far from Toulouse, where Jean Cassou and the poet Tristan Tzara were staying. Some of the people in this circle were involved in the French Resistance. Sonia’s son Charles Delaunay was also connected to the Resistance.

The document check should be described with a qualification: we know it from a published biography and scholarly work, not from a surviving Gestapo report.

Nor is there documentary evidence that Sonia had already received a deportation order.

But for a Jewish woman in France under Nazi threat, the risk was entirely real.

The fate of an artist she knew, Vladimir Baranoff-Rossiné, shows how terrible the outcome could be.

Born in Kherson, in what is now Ukraine, he came from a Jewish family, worked in Paris, and was associated with the Delaunays’ artistic circle.

The Nazis arrested him in November 1943. He was later deported to Auschwitz, where he died in 1944.

Auschwitz, or Auschwitz-Birkenau, was a Nazi complex of concentration and extermination camps in occupied Poland and became one of the defining symbols of the Holocaust.

Baranoff-Rossiné and Sonia Delaunay belonged to a European artistic world where national and cultural boundaries were crossed freely. Nazi policy, however, determined people’s fates by their origins.

After the liberation of France, Sonia was able to return to an active working life.

What she had lived through did not turn her art into a direct visual chronicle of the Holocaust. She continued to work with abstraction, colour, and design.

It would therefore be wrong to call all her geometric compositions “a coded history of Jewish suffering.”

But it would be just as wrong to separate her artistic biography from the persecution she faced as a Jew.

NAnews — Israel News | Nikk.Agency continues to tell the stories of people whose lives do not fit neatly within the borders of any single modern state in our “Jews from Ukraine” series. Delaunay’s life illustrates this especially clearly: a Ukrainian childhood, a Jewish family history, and French culture were joined in one life — including years when a question about a person’s origins could determine whether they survived.

The Louvre, Israel and the Last Letter About Odessa: Sonia Delaunay’s Legacy

After the war, Sonia continued working while also preserving Robert’s artistic legacy.

She took part in exhibitions, made graphic art and textiles, supported younger artists, and donated works to museum collections.

In 1964, an event took place that became one of the major recognitions of her work.

The Louvre hosted an exhibition connected with the donation of works by Sonia and Robert Delaunay to the French state.

Sonia is often described as the first woman artist to receive a retrospective at the Louvre during her lifetime. Major art museums have also characterised the event in those terms.

It is important to remember, however, that the 1964 exhibition involved the legacy of both husband and wife. Calling it “the first separate solo exhibition by a woman at the Louvre,” without qualification, would therefore be inaccurate.

In 1967, a major retrospective of Sonia’s work was held at the National Museum of Modern Art in Paris.

Her recognition was not merely an extension of her husband’s fame. Sonia held an independent place in the history of painting, fashion, and design. She outlived Robert by almost four decades, continuing to work and develop her own artistic language.

Her ties to Jewish culture also remained.

Gail Levin cites a recollection by art dealer Alex Rosenberg, who knew the elderly Sonia in Paris.

In the late 1960s, he was preparing to travel to Israel. Hearing this, Sonia unexpectedly spoke to him in Yiddish and asked him to bring back an Israeli perfume called “Chutzpah.”

Yiddish is the language historically spoken by many Eastern European Jews, especially before the Second World War. The word “chutzpah,” also familiar in modern Hebrew, can mean audacity, cheek, or bold determination, depending on the context.

When Rosenberg asked why she had switched to Yiddish, Sonia explained that she did not want her housekeeper to understand the request and ask for the same perfume.

But the woman understood Yiddish too. According to her, Sonia had hired her many years earlier precisely because she was Jewish.

This is one person’s recollection, recorded by a scholar, not proof of Delaunay’s particular religious beliefs.

Nevertheless, it suggests that Jewish culture remained part of her personal life even after decades in France.

The artist also had concrete connections with Israel.

In 1960, her works were exhibited at the Nora Gallery in Jerusalem. The event is mentioned in Levin’s study and in exhibition chronologies.

Her art later entered the collection of the Israel Museum in Jerusalem.

From July 9 to October 22, 2002, the museum held Sonia Delaunay: Works on Paper, an exhibition devoted to her works on paper.

The Israel Museum’s official exhibition archive explicitly describes her as an artist of Jewish origin born in Ukraine. Most of the exhibited works entered the museum in 1997 through a gift from collector Kay Merrill Hillman.

For Israeli art history, this is a tangible connection: it is not only about where the artist came from, but also about her works being part of a Jerusalem museum collection.

In the same NAnews series, we previously told the story of Mordechai Shenhavi, born in the Ukrainian town of Volochysk, who initiated the creation of Yad Vashem. Shenhavi’s and Delaunay’s lives were very different, yet both show how people from Ukraine’s Jewish communities helped shape culture and historical memory far beyond their birthplaces.

In her final years, however, Sonia found another way back to her Odessa family.

In June 1970, she received a letter from New York from Renée Raggio, a woman who had lived in Odessa in her youth and known Sonia’s father.

Researcher Valeria Dorogova discovered the letter in the Sonia and Robert Delaunay collection at the Kandinsky Library of the Centre Pompidou. In 2026, Yevgeny Demenok published the results of his examination of the document in an article titled “Sonia Delaunay’s Odessa Roots: Her Father’s Fate.”

Renée wrote that Elya Stern had worked at a factory for many years, handled demanding technical responsibilities, and enjoyed the owners’ trust.

She remembered that he developed a severe form of tuberculosis, was sent to a sanatorium near Odessa, and died in the spring of 1919.

Renée remembered one of her final meetings with him.

One spring day, shortly before his death, she and her husband visited the sanatorium. Elya was sitting in the garden, calm and talking with his visitors. Soon afterwards, Renée left the area; when she returned to Odessa, she learned that he had died.

For historians, this is rare testimony about the final months of a man whose life had received almost no attention in earlier biographies of his famous daughter.

For Sonia herself, the letter offered a chance to learn more about her father more than half a century after his death.

Some of these recollections also found their way into her 1978 autobiography.

The book Nous irons jusqu’au soleil, prepared with the participation of Jacques Damase and Patrick Raynaud, appeared a year before the artist’s death.

In it, Sonia returned to her origins, childhood, parents, and earliest visual impressions.

She remembered Ukraine’s bright colours, festive clothes, village weddings, and the colours of nature that had stayed with her.

Sonia Delaunay died in Paris on December 5, 1979. She was 94.

A substantial body of documents relating to her life and work entered museum and library collections in France. She gave materials from her early years, including family correspondence, to researcher Jean-Claude Marcadé.

Decades later, those letters enabled Yevgeny Demenok and his colleagues to reconstruct many previously unknown chapters in the Stern family’s history.

Interest in the artist continues to grow in Ukraine.

In 2019, Odessa hosted an exhibition titled “Sonia Delaunay: In Search of Identity,” devoted to her origins and art.

In November 2025, the Odessa Museum of Modern Art launched the “Ode to Sonia” programme to mark the 140th anniversary of her birth.

In 2026, the programme continued with exhibitions, research, and a project titled “Sonia Delaunay — A Simultaneous World,” connecting Odessa and Lviv.

The Odessa Museum of Modern Art, the Andrey Sheptytsky National Museum in Lviv, and the National Art Museum of Ukraine participated in organising the events. The National Art Museum of Ukraine provided seven original works by Delaunay for the Lviv exhibition.

These events show that Delaunay’s return to Ukraine’s cultural history is taking place not just in biographical articles, but through actual museum collections and exhibitions.

At the same time, her biography should not become a competition over national identity.

Sonia Delaunay was a French artist of Jewish origin, born in what is now Ukraine. St Petersburg, Germany, Spain, and Portugal also helped shape her life and education.

Certain facts, however, cannot be erased from her story.

Sarah Stern’s birth was recorded in the Odessa rabbinate’s register. Her parents lived in Odessa for decades. Her mother sent letters to Rue Saint-Simon in Paris and received money from her daughter. Her younger brother endured Soviet camps. During the Holocaust, Sonia herself had to conceal her Jewish origins.

And in her final years, she returned in memory to her childhood in Ukraine.

Sonia Delaunay’s famous colour circles belong to the history of world art. Alongside them, however, ordinary family letters have survived — letters in which a mother asks her daughter to write more often, asks about her grandson, and thanks her for help.

Without those letters, the artist’s biography would be incomplete.

NAnews. “Jews from Ukraine” series.

Documentary sources: research by Yevgeny Demenok and Anatoly Belogorsky; the Stern family correspondence; Gail Levin’s article “Threading Jewish Identity”; museum materials from the Centre Pompidou, MoMA, and the Israel Museum; studies of the Ukrainian avant-garde; and publications of the Odessa Museum of Modern Art.

Author: Stas Shifer

The news of their election is not from October. The International Chess Federation FIDE announced the decision on July 30. In August, NANews detailed why these two names appeared together. Now the next part of the story has emerged — the ceremonies and photos of the participants who came to St. Louis.

I compared the July announcement of the organizers with the October reports and photo reports. There is a significant detail here: the decision to recognize the achievements of the chess players was made in the summer, and the celebrations were held on different days.

How the celebration took place in St. Louis

The World Chess Hall of Fame is located in the USA, but its world section is not an American national ranking. Candidates are chosen by FIDE representatives, evaluating not just one result, but a person’s contribution to chess. After the inclusion of the 2026 laureates, there are 61 names on the world list.

This year, in addition to Gelfand and Ivanchuk, it was joined by Ulf Andersson from Sweden, Nona Ioseliani from Georgia, and Alexandra Kosteniuk, representing Switzerland.

The celebrations were divided. Gelfand was honored on October 8 during the opening of the US Championships. Ivanchuk attended the ceremony on October 24, held as part of a chess conference.

The Swedish Chess Federation published photos by Austin Fuller from the Saint Louis Chess Club. Next to Ivanchuk stand Garry Kasparov, Ulf Andersson, and Alexandra Kosteniuk. The photograph confirms the Ukrainian’s presence at the event but does not mean that all five laureates were recognized simultaneously.

Boris Gelfand: from Minsk to the Israeli team

Boris Gelfand was born in 1968 in Minsk and repatriated to Israel in 1998. It was for the Israeli team that he won silver at the 2008 Chess Olympiad and bronze in 2010.

For a reader far from chess: this is a team international competition, not part of the regular Olympic Games. In 1990, Gelfand won it still with the USSR team.

But most often, Gelfand’s highest achievement is associated with Moscow, May 2012. In the match for the world champion title, he faced the reigning champion Viswanathan Anand. After twelve games, the score was tied — 6:6.

The winner was determined by a tiebreak — additional games with shorter thinking time. The Israeli grandmaster lost, but came closer to the highest title in classical chess than any Israeli representative before.

Gelfand was included in the Hall of Fame not for one match. His track record also includes the 2009 World Cup, victory in the 2011 Candidates Tournament, years of competing against the strongest chess players, and work as a coach.

For Israeli chess enthusiasts, his biography is also a story of repatriation. A person who received a chess education in the USSR continued his career under the Israeli flag and helped the national team win its largest Olympic medals.

Vasyl Ivanchuk: three times second in the world

Vasyl Ivanchuk was born in 1969 in Kopychyntsi, Ternopil region. In 1988, he received the title of grandmaster. Subsequently, he rose to the second position in the world ranking three times.

He won the prestigious tournament in Linares in 1989, 1991, and 1995. In the final of the 2002 FIDE World Championship, he lost to compatriot Ruslan Ponomariov.

Not having won the title of world champion in classical chess, Ivanchuk achieved success in other disciplines: he became the world blitz champion in 2007 and the rapid champion in 2016.

Blitz is a game with a few minutes for the entire game; rapid gives more time, but significantly less than classical control. For the viewer, these are different speeds of the same game, requiring a different approach to calculating options.

With the Ukrainian team, Ivanchuk won the Chess Olympiads in 2004 and 2010, and before Ukraine’s independence, two more as part of the USSR. Unlike Gelfand, his main team victories after the collapse of the Union are associated with Ukraine.

Both grandmasters started in the same Soviet chess system. Their careers then proceeded under different flags.

This connection between the chess communities of the two countries is maintained among young players. In August, NANews wrote about the participation of Israeli chess player Felix Tulchinsky in a Ukrainian tournament, where he took fourth place among 170 participants.

The current ceremonies concluded the story that began with FIDE’s July decision. In the official registry of the World Chess Hall of Fame, Boris Gelfand is listed under Israel, and Vasyl Ivanchuk under Ukraine. The year of inclusion for both is the same: 2026.

NANews — News of Israel | Nikk.Agency

Author: Stas Shifer

Grandpa Ivan, who in the first “Krashanka” planned to launch a rocket at the Kremlin, returns. Now he has a more serious plan: to build a time machine and try to change history. While his invention tests the strength of his own family, the Ukrainian comedy “Krashanka 2.0. Quantum Paradox” is preparing for its Israeli premiere.

In Ukraine, the film will be widely released on October 8, 2026. Israeli viewers will see it less than a month after the Ukrainian premiere.

In the first part, there was a rocket aimed at the Kremlin. Now — a time machine.

In 2024, director Taras Dudary presented the comedy “Krashanka.” Its main character is Ivan Andreevich Zabyaka, a retiree from the Kharkiv region, played by Stanislav Boklan. After the start of the Russian invasion, grandpa decides that waiting for victory is not enough and begins to restore an old missile launcher to strike the Kremlin.

It is at this moment that his adult children and grandson come to visit him for Easter. Instead of a peaceful family holiday, it turns into a story about war, mutual grievances, old conflicts, and a rather dangerous hobby of grandpa.

For Israeli viewers, it is worth explaining the title itself. The Ukrainian word “krashanka” means a painted Easter egg. The first film was built around a family gathering for Easter — a holiday that has great family and cultural significance in Ukraine.

In the sequel, Ivan Zabyaka changes the direction of his experiments. His new invention is the Quantum Paradox Machine, hidden in an old minibus. With this unusual transport, grandpa and his family embark on a journey where the past may turn out to be no less unpredictable than the future.

Behind all the fantasy lies a very earthly story. Relatives try to find common ground, overcome accumulated grievances, and deal with the consequences of war. There will be many jokes and incredible adventures, but the creators promise moments where viewers will find it hard to laugh.

Boklan, Zhurakovska, KOLA, and the world boxing champion

The director of the sequel is again Taras Dudary. The production was handled by Mamas Film Production with the support of the State Agency of Ukraine for Cinema. The film’s duration is about 94 minutes.

Returning to the role of inventor Ivan is Stanislav Boklan, one of the most famous Ukrainian theater and film actors. His daughter Olga is played by Olesya Zhurakovska, Anna by Darya Legeida, Yaroslav by Vladimir Gladky, and grandson Mishko by Mikhail Pulyansky. The cast also includes Artur Logai and Lyudmila Zagorskaya.

But the authors decided not to limit themselves to familiar characters.

The film features singer KOLA (Anastasia Prudius), a popular Ukrainian performer, choreographer Alyona Shoptenko, and Denis Berinchyk, a former WBO lightweight world boxing champion. Berinchyk plays himself, and one of the scenes with his participation unfolds in a boxing ring.

An unusual cast was formed: professional actors, musicians, a dancer, and a world-class athlete meet in one family comedy.

Why “Krashanka 2.0. Quantum Paradox” appears in Israel

The Israeli premieres are organized by “Znyato v Ukraini” / Created in Ukraine — a company that has been distributing modern Ukrainian cinema in Israel since 2022. Its program has already included “Mavka,” “Dovbush,” “Pamfir,” “20 Days in Mariupol,” and many other films.

NANovosti — News of Israel | Nikk.Agency previously reported on the September screenings of the comedy “Train ‘Chervona Ruta'” in Tel Aviv and Haifa. At that time, Created in Ukraine brought another Ukrainian story related to music, family relationships, and an attempt to restore lost closeness.

“Krashanka” has a completely different plot, although the question is similar: how can a Ukrainian family maintain relationships when the war has changed everyone’s life?

For Russian-speaking Israelis, Ukrainian cinema is also interesting for the opportunity to see modern Ukraine beyond the daily military reports. To look at its humor, language, family traditions, and the ability to laugh even at the most difficult circumstances.

Where and when to watch “Krashanka 2.0. Quantum Paradox” in Israel

November 4, 2026, Wednesday — Tel Aviv.

November 5, 2026, Thursday — Haifa.

Organizer: Created in Ukraine / “Znyato v Ukraini”.

Exact addresses of cinemas, start times of screenings, ticket prices, and information about subtitles are not yet specified in the initial announcement.

Details and updates — on the official Facebook event page.

In the meantime, you can rewatch the first “Krashanka” and remember how grandpa Ivan’s story with the rocket ended. After all, in the second part, he aims at the very course of history.

And who knows, maybe the main task of his time machine is not to fix the past, but to help loved ones finally hear each other.

Odesa’s Memorial to the Righteous: How Henrikh Ostashevskyi Saved Jewish Families and Earned Eternal Remembrance

Date and Time: July 9, 2025, 11:00

Location: opposite the Odesa Academic Ukrainian Theatre named after V. Vasylko (Italian Street, Odesa) (Pushkinska Street in Odesa no longer exists. As part of decommunization and derussification, it was renamed Italian Street in July 2024).

Organizers

• Odesa Regional Association of Jews — former ghetto and concentration camp prisoners
• Theatre named after V. Vasylko
• Odesa Holocaust Museum

Biography of Henrikh Romanovych Ostashevskyi

Henrikh Romanovych Ostashevskyi (June 1, 1921, Odesa — February 3, 2004, Odesa) was a Ukrainian theatre and film actor, People’s Artist of the Ukrainian SSR.

From his life path:

• Studied at the Odesa Theatre School (1938–1941).
• After Odesa was liberated from Romanian occupation in 1944, he became an actor at the Odesa Young Spectator’s Theatre and worked there for 14 years.
• Since 1958, he performed at the Odesa Ukrainian Music and Drama Theatre named after the October Revolution.

Awards:

• Order of the Badge of Honor
• Title of People’s Artist of the Ukrainian SSR (1976)

Recognition and Commemoration

• For rescuing the Jewish population during World War II, he was recognized as a Righteous Among the Nations.
• His name is inscribed on the Wall of Honor in the Garden of the Righteous Among the Nations at the Yad Vashem memorial complex (Jerusalem, Israel).
• In 2001, the Alley of the Righteous Among the Nations was opened in Prokhorivsky Square in Odesa, where a birch tree was planted in his honor.
• His name is featured in the exhibition of the Odesa Holocaust Museum.

Timeline of Key Events

Filmography (15 Works)

“My Daughter” (1957), “A Tale of First Love” (1957), “The Blue Arrow” (1958), “Storm over the Fields” (1958), “If Stones Could Speak…” (1958), “The Return” (1960), “Human Blood Is Not Water” (1960), “Dmytro Horytsvit” (1961), “Keys to Heaven” (1964), “People Do Not Know Everything” (1964), “They Knew Them Only by Sight” (1966), “Rainbow Formula” (1966), “Dr. Absta’s Experiment” (1968), “Between the Tall Grains” (1970), “Fiery Roads” (1977–1984)

Organization and Preparation for the Ceremony

1. Historical Segment:
   • Outdoor photo gallery of rescued families
   • Exhibition of archival documents and photographs at the Odesa Holocaust Museum
2. Artistic Accompaniment:
   • Musical-poetic prologue by the Theatre named after V. Vasylko
   • Reading of letters and recollections from contemporaries
3. Official Part:
   • Speeches by the mayor, the rabbi, and organizers on the significance of July 9, 1944
   • Flower laying at the memorial and the birch tree
4. Final Screening:
   • Excerpt from the documentary film about Ostashevskyi
   • Chamber concert by young Odesa musicians

Righteous Among the Nations from Ukraine

To date, 2,707 citizens of Ukraine have been awarded the title of Righteous Among the Nations for their selfless rescue of Jews during the Holocaust — providing shelter, food assistance, and organizing safe passage under mortal threat.

The Importance of Preserving Memory

The installation of the memorial plaque to Henrikh Ostashevskyi is a token of eternal gratitude for humanity and heroism. The editorial board of NAnews – News of Israel calls to preserve the memory of the Righteous as a guarantee of peaceful relations between peoples.

#NAseo

Not staff maps.
Not briefings.

People who suddenly began to do more than expected of them.

Here is the entire series – “Bridges of Hope” 9 episodes:

“The large-scale documentary project of Channel 9 «Bridges of Hope». This is not a chronicle of military actions. It is a chronicle of the human spirit. Since October 7, 2023, the life of Israel has changed forever. In this 9-episode series, we will embark on a journey across the country — from the shelled North to the wounded South. We will show the stories of doctors, volunteers, soldiers, and civilians who, in the moment of greatest tragedy, found the strength not just to survive, but to become a support for each other.”

By the finale, in the 9-1 episode titled “This is Why Israel Always Wins” | Bridges of Hope – final episode, the author leads the viewer to those who already had experience in civil mobilization:

“In the final episode, we will tell the stories of people and organizations from different parts of Israeli society. Left and right, residents of the noisy center and distant periphery, who in the country’s difficult hour left all disputes behind and began to help their country, showing its most beautiful sides.

📌 Heroes of the episode:

Professor Albert Penkhasov, rector of Ariel University, directed all efforts to help students and their families. Lecturers conducted Zoom lectures for reservist students who were in Gaza.

Representatives of the movement «Brothers in Arms» turned the protest infrastructure into a large-scale volunteer headquarters engaged in evacuation, logistics, and assistance to the residents of the south.

Elena Mrost and Rabbi Eli Talberg created a support center for the families of the deceased in Karmiel, helping them cope with loss and not be left alone with their pain.

Anna Zharova and the organization «Israeli Friends of Ukraine» coordinated the evacuation of Sderot residents, food delivery, and support for soldiers.

Nine episodes ago, we set out to find the answer to the main question: what holds us together despite all trials and disagreements?

We sincerely hope that through the pain you were able to see the main thing — our resilience, our love, and hope”.

Thus, in the frame appear Israeli Friends of Ukraine and their co-founder Anna Zharova.

Experience brought from another catastrophe

Before the Israeli war, this team worked for many years with the Ukrainian direction. Initially, helping those affected after 2014. Then — large-scale support programs after 2022: humanitarian cargo, escorting the wounded, finding housing, coordination between donors and volunteers.

This was not a spontaneous initiative.

This was a well-established system.

On October 7, it became clear that such systems were needed within the country.

Phones, lists, drivers, understanding how to act when official structures are overloaded. Not theory. Practice.

In the film, this is stated calmly, without pathos: people already had the skill of working in chaos. Therefore, they could start immediately.

Where the finale is filmed and why there

Haifa as a working point, not a decoration

The interview was recorded at a volunteer center for helping Ukrainian refugees in Haifa. The logic of the choice is clear. It was here that a network accustomed to round-the-clock workload was formed over the years.

There was no need to invent a structure.

It existed.

Later, Zharova will formulate the meaning of the filming as follows:

«For us, this is more than an interview. It is a conversation about choice, responsibility, and humanity».

The phrase is short. But in it — the entire explanation of why this line became part of the final episode.

Those who are off-screen

Television is limited by time. However, Zharova emphasizes the names of those who worked nearby: Ella Storm, Vyacheslav Feldman, Sashenka Zhuravel.

Her position is straightforward:

«These are the people without whom this story would not have been heard».

For documentarians, this is an important emphasis. The project is built on the recognition of invisible work — logistics, phones, distribution, family support.

Without this, nothing works.

What the organization did in the first weeks of the war

Cars, routes, families

From the first hours, it became clear: a huge number of people needed to be evacuated, accommodated, fed. Often it was about the elderly, new immigrants, those who were not oriented in the system.

«Israeli Friends of Ukraine» already had databases of drivers and volunteers.

The mechanism started automatically.

Flights to the south were formed. Apartments and houses were sought in the north and center. Temporary shelters appeared. People were distributed literally by hand, through acquaintances, social networks, personal calls.

Zharova emphasizes:

«Our main task was to help those who were not visible and not heard».

This is the key characteristic of all work — the focus on those who are easily lost between reports and numbers.

Food for soldiers and human contact

When restaurants began cooking for army units, delivery was needed. Volunteers took on the routing. Cars went to bases daily.

The work looked routine.

But it was in this routine that resilience lay.

The story about ice cream

One of the episodes that came into discussion after the release of the series was Ukrainian ice cream. It was brought along with other products. Soldiers waited for it.

If the boxes arrived without it, they asked.

This is not a joke. This is an indicator of how important simple signs of normal life are to people. Sweet, familiar, human.

This is how morale works.

It is such details that the director leaves in the finale — they speak louder than analytics.

Why this line is important for understanding the whole picture

By the time the viewer reaches the last episode, they have already seen doctors, reservists, rabbis, volunteers in different parts of the country. The question arises: what do they have in common?

The answer gradually forms — the willingness to take responsibility without waiting for orders.

Zharova’s story fits perfectly into this formula. A community accustomed to helping outside of Israel, in a critical moment, turns its efforts inward.

Humanitarian competence has no national borders. It simply changes the direction of application.

And at this point in the narrative, the conclusion naturally sounds, which was previously formulated by the editorial office of NAnews — News of Israel | Nikk.Agency: society survives thanks to horizontal connections faster than any bureaucracy.

Gratitude and memory fixation

Zharova separately thanks KAMANDA Productions Ltd for the opportunity to tell this story. For the participants, it is important not only to do the work but also to preserve it in public memory.

Otherwise, in a few years, only dry formulations will remain.

And the main thing will disappear — the feeling of a shoulder nearby.

What remains after the credits

The finale does not offer simple recipes for the future. It records the fact: in the most difficult weeks, thousands of people in Israel acted as if there was no other way.

Someone opened their home.
Someone got behind the wheel.
Someone took on someone else’s pain as their task.

The line of «Israeli Friends of Ukraine» shows that solidarity can be a learned skill. It can be developed. It can be activated.

And when it is activated, the country has a chance to go through a catastrophe without losing itself.

That is why this story stands at the end.

It is not about the past. It is about the mechanism of survival.

…

…

…

Author: Lev Varshavsky | NANews

According to Kyiv authorities, the first wave began late in the evening of October 26. The air raid alert during the second attack lasted from 03:25 to 04:21. In the Podil district, hits were recorded on an administrative building and two non-residential structures. In the morning, Mayor Vitali Klitschko reported one dead and 14 injured; a later report mentioned 15 injured. These figures refer to one series of attacks and should not be added together.

University, hospitals, and people who came to help

In the Desnianskyi district, the territory of the State Trade and Economic University, located near the Lesna metro station, was affected. The strike damaged the academic building and dormitories. Among the injured are students. According to data citing city authorities, late in the evening, nine injured were in hospitals, three in serious condition. This information is from the time of the first strike, not the final outcome of the night.

In the same area, the Prospect shopping center and Auchan supermarket were damaged: windows were shattered, and the facade and roof were affected. In other places, houses, trams, and cars were damaged. In two medical institutions, windows were blown out, including in the intensive care unit of one of them. Among the injured were two ambulance crew members who arrived after the strike.

Russia claims it strikes infrastructure used by the Ukrainian army. However, these statements do not negate the recorded damage to educational and medical buildings. There is no independent confirmation of the military purpose of each affected object at the time of preparing the material.

Why the strike on the Southern Bridge became a separate problem

The Southern Bridge is both a car crossing and a section of the green line of the Kyiv metro. After the new damage, car traffic on it was stopped in both directions. Trains on the green line ran between the Syrets and Vydubychi stations, and communication across the Dnipro was temporarily halted. Some buses were redirected via the Darnytskyi Bridge. The red metro line restored service to Lesna by morning.

At the same time, the bridge had already suffered from attacks in early October and on October 22. Repeated damage to the same transport hub raises the question not only of repairing the road surface. If the crossing is not operational, metro passengers and motorists are simultaneously forced to use alternative routes. For Kyiv, divided by the Dnipro, this is a significant limitation on city life.

In NANews — News of Israel | Nikk.Agency, we have already analyzed Russian strikes on Kyiv amid attempts to organize negotiations. But here, the practical side seems more important to me. Damage to a strategically significant crossing does not explain the hits on university dormitories and hospitals. At the same time, it cannot be automatically asserted that all strikes on different buildings had one predetermined plan: there is no such evidence now.

What this means for Israel

For Israelis with family and friends in Ukraine, the names ‘Lesna’, ‘Chernihivska’, or ‘Darnytskyi Bridge’ are not abstract landmarks. These are areas and transport routes that people use daily. The Israeli audience is also familiar with the other side of the issue: missile defense work. A ballistic missile leaves significantly less time for warning and interception than many drones.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky demanded an acceleration of air defense supplies. Even before this attack, he said that the Ukrainian side had been waiting for almost a month for American approval of missiles for the Patriot and NASAMS systems. But these statements do not establish that a specific hit occurred precisely because of the supply delay. Such a conclusion would require data on the launch, the operation of Ukrainian air defense, and the circumstances of the strike.

Israel has already faced Russian strikes on Kyiv not only as an observer. After the death of a 14-year-old Israeli citizen there in September, the country’s Foreign Ministry directly condemned the Russian attack. The history of Israeli diplomatic statements since 2022 has been detailed in a separate material by NANews. The current reports do not contain confirmation that there are Israeli citizens among the dead or injured.

The strikes on October 26–27 occurred amid new US attempts to achieve negotiations between Ukraine and Russia. In a previous analysis of American proposals, I wrote that without verifiable security guarantees, the negotiation formula would remain incomplete. Today’s attack adds specific texture to this dispute: even a local ceasefire in one area of Ukraine does not mean the cessation of shelling of the capital. According to Reuters, diplomatic contacts continued, but Russian strikes on Kyiv did not cease.

As of the morning of October 27, city services were assessing the damage to the Southern Bridge, and transport restrictions remained. The final scale of destruction and the timeline for restoration had not yet been announced.

NAnews Nikk.Agency – An independent information project created by a group of Israelis with Ukrainian roots.

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We talk about the relationship between Israel and Ukraine, about how the fate of the two peoples intertwine, and how historical and modern events affect our future.

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Nanovos Nikk.agency – a private publication of Israelis with Ukrainian roots. News of Israel and Ukraine, relations between the two countries, the exposure of fakes, analyst. Read Russian, Ukrainian, English and Hebrew.

About NAnews nikk.agency

We are an independent project created by a group of Israelis with Ukrainian roots. NAnews is:

✅ Actual news of Israel and Ukraine

✅ Exposure of fakes and manipulations

✅ History, culture and social life of the two countries

✅ Honest information without political engagement

We Not related with parties, organizations or political groups and We are not financed by states. All work is carried out exclusively at the expense of project participants.

NAnews is more than news

We do not just cover events – we help to understand their depth, reveal the relationship and fight for historical truth.

We We cannot be silent About what is happening in Israel and Ukraine. This Our common world And we talk about him honestly.

Want to share the news?

Send materials, analytics, reports or announcements of important events. After checking the facts, we will post them on our website and in social networks.

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NAnews nikk.agency – Independent information resource publishing Actual news of Israel In four languages: Russian, Ukrainian, English and Hebrew. We cover the events related to Israel and Ukraine, analyze international relations, expose fakes and represent exclusive opinions.

Follow News of Israel V NAnews nikk.agency – Honest information without manipulations.

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“… The UN is a major problem. It was created to maintain world peace and engage in peacekeeping when needed. Unfortunately, they did not create armed forces to support all nations. Moreover, Russia is part of it, and I understand that all members want to change the charter and remove it. Ultimately, we want them (Russia – ed.) not to appear on the UN map at all because they set a bad example for the world…

In our regular column “Jews from Ukraine” — Philip Kotler, by blood, is a Ukrainian Jew whose family roots go deep into Ukrainian soil, from which his parents were forced to emigrate to the United States in the early 20th century.

Who is Philip Kotler

Philip Kotler is an American economist and professor at Northwestern University (Kellogg School of Management), known as the “father of modern marketing”. He developed the concepts of the marketing mix (4P), social marketing, demarketing, and Marketing 3.0, which emphasizes values and humanism.

By combining marketing with psychology and economics, he laid the scientific foundations for modern marketing practice.

One of his most famous works, Marketing Management, is used worldwide as a key university textbook. His theories help companies build customer-oriented strategies and gain competitive advantages in global markets.

He has written over 80 books, and his flagship work Marketing Management is used in over 60 countries and translated into dozens of languages, including Ukrainian and Hebrew. Throughout his career, he received 22 honorary doctorates, including from Ukrainian institutions.

Family and Jewish roots

Kotler was born in 1931 in Chicago, in a family of Jewish immigrants from Ukraine. His father, Maurice Kotler (original surname Kotliarevsky), was born in Nizhyn in 1905, and his mother, Betty Bubar, was born in Berdychiv or Chernivtsi in 1910. They emigrated to the U.S. in 1917.

“I grew up in an environment where everyone knew you had to be not only successful but also useful.” — Philip Kotler

Nizhyn: Jewish pain and strength

Nizhyn is one of Ukraine’s oldest Jewish centers. In the early 20th century, Jews made up about 30% of the population. The city had 10 synagogues, schools, doctors, and craftsmen. The pogroms of 1905 and 1919 led to mass Jewish emigration.

Chernivtsi: Capital of Jewish intelligentsia

Chernivtsi was the cultural capital of Bukovina. It was home to Zionists, poets, and scholars. On the eve of World War I, Jews made up up to 40% of the city’s population. Famous Jewish natives include Paul Celan, Joseph Schmidt, Eliezer Steinbarg. Kotler’s mother was raised in this unique cultural atmosphere.

The path to success

Philip studied at the University of Chicago and MIT. He was the first to apply an economic-mathematical approach to marketing. His ideas became the foundation of strategic management and humane business thinking.

Philip Kotler: I was deeply disappointed by India’s and China’s neutrality on Ukraine

Philip Kotler in 2022:

“I’m very interested in peacemaking and marketing peace. We must identify areas and zones of war, like Syria and others. The truth is that the UN is a major problem. It was created to maintain world peace and intervene when needed, but it failed to create armed forces to defend nations. Moreover, Russia is part of it, and I understand that members want to change the charter and remove them. Ultimately, we want them to disappear from the UN map because they are a bad example for the world. We also must demand compensation for the destruction they’ve caused. Yes, there are people in Russia who don’t want war, but they too bear responsibility.

When the war against your country started, I hoped that all great powers, like India and China, would support Ukraine. I was deeply disappointed when they chose neutrality. The U.S. and other allies should be more active in addressing those countries publicly about what Russia is doing.”

Kotler and Ukraine

• 2006 — Honorary doctorate from Kyiv-Mohyla Academy
• 2009 — Visits to Kyiv and Odesa with lectures
• 2022 — Online lecture in support of Ukraine
• 2023 — His genealogy published by Ukrainian researchers
• 2025 — Featured in article “The Father of Marketing with Ukrainian Roots” on Shotam.info

“When the war against your country began, I hoped all leading nations would support Ukraine. I was disappointed when that didn’t happen. But that’s no reason to give up.” — Kotler, 2022

NAnews – Israel News

On the website NAnews – Israel News, we highlight individuals who connect Ukraine and Israel. Kotler is one of these symbols. His name is known in every business school, and his voice speaks for Ukraine.

Kotler and Israel

• 1997 — Lectures at Tel Aviv University as part of the Kellogg-Recanati MBA program
• 2002 — Marketing Management published in Hebrew
• Collaboration with Professor Yaakov Hornik
• Cited in Israeli media and business forums

“If business can sell Coca-Cola to every village, why can’t we sell the idea of peace?” — Kotler on peace marketing

Conclusion: Jews from Ukraine — a global legacy

Philip Kotler is one of the most influential intellectuals of the 20th and 21st centuries. His roots are in Nizhyn and Chernivtsi, his ideas have reached the entire world, and his voice speaks for justice and enlightenment.

Read more in our ongoing series “Jews from Ukraine” on NAnews – Israel News.

International Jewish Book Day is celebrated annually on December 29 (International Jewish Book Day). This holiday symbolizes the rich literature and cultural heritage of the Jewish people, reflecting their influence on world culture.

However, behind the celebration lie deep historical ties that unite Israel, Ukraine and the Jewish community.

One of the brightest pages of this story is ancient example of Jewish literature — “Kiev letter” — unique document of the 10th century, written in Hebrewwhich emphasizes the Jewish presence at that time in the lands of Kievan Rus.

The document is written in Hebrew and contains the first mention of Kyiv in the form Qiyyōb (Heb. קייב).

History of International Jewish Book Day

The origins of this holiday remain unclear. It is believed that it was first celebrated in 1981, when the Jewish National and University Library in Jerusalem (today the National Library of Israel) initiated an event dedicated to the promotion of Jewish literature.

The purpose of the holiday is to recall that the book has always been a central element of Jewish culture, an important tool for the transmission of knowledge, spirituality and values.

Holiday traditions

Today, International Jewish Book Day is accompanied by the following events:

1. Book fairs: We offer works by both classical Jewish authors and contemporary writers whose work is devoted to Jewish themes.
2. Literary evenings: Writers share their work, discuss trending topics, and interact with readers.
3. Lectures and seminars: Participants will learn about the history of Jewish literature, its influence on world culture, and its importance for preserving Jewish identity.
4. Children's programs: Special attention is given to children to instill a love of reading from a very young age.

The holiday has become a symbol of the unity of Jewish communities and a reminder of the contribution of literature to the development of national identity.

“Kiev Letter”: the first written mention of Kyiv

The Kyiv leaf is a unique document of the 10th century, written in Hebrew.

The letter was discovered among the collection of Hebrew manuscripts of the Cairo Geniza in the Ben Ezra Synagogue by University of Chicago professor Norman Golb in 1962. Later, Harvard University professor Emelyan Pritsak joined the study of the monument.

The authors reported the results of their research at several scientific conferences and in 1982 the document was published in their joint monograph, with Golb providing the translation and Pritsak the interpretation. In the USSR, the existence of the letter was known, but not advertised. The letter was first published translated from English into Russian in 1997.

Manuscript TS (glass) 12.122. kept in the Cambridge University Library. It is a piece of parchment 22.5 cm long and 14.4 cm wide. The sheet is damaged in two places and has seven vertical folds. The text is written on the front side, the back side is blank. Ink is brown (faded black). The text occupies 30 lines.

According to the discoverers, this letter is the oldest authentic document written on the territory of Kievan Rus and can date back to the 10th century.

It was created by the Jewish community of Kyiv, which was under the influence of the Khazar Khaganate. The letter is the most important evidence about the life of the Jewish community in Ancient Rus'.

Contents of the “Kyiv Letter”

The document is a letter in which the community appeals to Jews in other cities with a request to help raise money for the ransom of Jacob ben Hanukkah, a member of the community who found himself in debt slavery. The letter describes the tragic story of Yakov, who vouched for his brother, who took money from the “infidels.” After the death of his brother, his debt was transferred to the guarantor, which led to Yakov’s imprisonment.

Interesting facts:

• The letter contains 30 lines of text written in brown ink.
• The document mentions Kyiv under the name Qiyyōb (קייב).
• The last word is written in Turkic runes, which is probably the only surviving written evidence of the Khazar language.

The meaning of the “Kyiv letter”

The “Kiev Letter” is not only a valuable historical evidence, but also a unique source for the study of Jewish and Khazar cultures. The document illustrates the legal and social norms of the time, showing how the system of surety and debt slavery worked.

Jewish literature in Ukraine: general context

Ukraine occupies an important place in the history of Jewish literature. Many prominent Jewish writers, such as Sholem Aleichem, Yitzchok Ben-Zvi and others, drew inspiration from the life of Jewish communities located in Kyiv, Odessa and other cities.

An important stage was the era of the Khazar Kaganate, when Judaism became widespread and Kyiv became an important center of Jewish life. The Kiev Letter serves as evidence of the deep historical roots of Jews in the territory of modern Ukraine.

Why is this important today?

For Israel and Ukraine, literature and history create a powerful cultural bridge. Modern literary projects, translations and publications help to recall common pages of history, such as the “Kiev Letter”, and deepen mutual understanding between peoples.

Jewish Book: Implications for the Community

The Jewish book has always been more than just text. It acted as a repository of spirituality, culture and knowledge. Today, International Jewish Book Day helps highlight the importance of written heritage, both ancient and modern.

On the website NAnews – Israel News we often talk about events related to Jewish culture and its historical roots. The Kiev Letter, being the oldest written evidence about Kyiv, shows how literature helps preserve the identity and culture of the people.

Conclusion

International Jewish Book Day is not only a holiday, but also an opportunity to reflect on the importance of literature and its influence on the history of peoples. The Kiev Leaf as part of the Jewish and Ukrainian heritage is a vivid example of how a common history can unite.

Ukraine and Israel are connected by deep historical ties. From the Kyiv Letter to modern Jewish literature, these connections remain strong.

Read more about the unique history of the Jews of Ukraine on the website NAnews – Israel News! Learn how ancient documents and modern books become part of a common culture.

20 different editions, stories about friendship, family memory, Jewish holidays, and even about how to cope with losing a home. The Ukrainian center “Mi razom!” in Haifa received children’s books in Ukrainian from the international program PJ Library. We tell you what this library is, which works have been given to children, and where else in Israel you can get Ukrainian books for free.

Author: Alexander Khmelnitsky

On September 29, 2026, it became known about a new arrival of children’s literature at the Ukrainian cultural and developmental center “Mi razom!” (“We are together!”) in Haifa. The center received books in Ukrainian for free from the international Jewish educational program PJ Library, also known as the “Pajama Library.”

In the published announcement, the center addressed parents with joyful news: now you can get children’s books in Ukrainian for free from PJ Library. Organizers describe them as bright, kind, and meaningful stories for children of different ages — about friendship, family, mutual help, traditions, holidays, courage, love, and important life values.

It is especially emphasized that this is not just about free literature, but about the opportunity to preserve the Ukrainian language in families living in Israel today.

“Let the Ukrainian book live in our homes, help children preserve their native language, and bring pleasant moments of family reading,” says the center’s message.

The organizers expressed special gratitude to Olga and the “Pajama Library” for the books provided free of charge, attention to Ukrainian families, and support.

“For us, these are not just books — it’s an opportunity to give children even more warmth, knowledge, interesting stories, and a love for reading,” emphasized the “We are together!” center.

In the photo accompanying the message, you can see 20 different editions. This is not necessarily the entire volume of the transferred batch — the center does not specify the number of copies. However, it is now known what exactly is offered to young readers.

And the selection turned out to be interesting. Next to each other are tales about Hanukkah and Purim, works by modern Israeli writers, stories about friendship, responsibility, family traditions. There is also a book about a woman who has to leave her home again.

For Ukrainian children who found themselves in Israel after the start of the full-scale Russian invasion, some plots may be especially close.

What is PJ Library and why does it publish books in Ukrainian

PJ Library appeared in 2005 thanks to American Jewish philanthropist Harold Grinspoon. It all started with two hundred American families receiving children’s literature for free.

Gradually, the program became international. Its task is to introduce children to Jewish history, holidays, culture, and values through literary works that parents can read with them.

In Israel, the project is known as “Sifriyat Pajama” (ספריית פיג’מה) – https://www.pjisrael.org/. This program operates in kindergartens in cooperation with the Israeli Ministry of Education. Children receive books, take them home, and read them with their parents.

In Ukraine – https://pjlibrary.ua/ – the program appeared even before the big war: family registration began in March 2019, and the first book shipments — in April. Initially, Kyiv, Dnipropetrovsk, and Odessa regions participated, later the project spread throughout the country.

The target audience of the Ukrainian “Pajama Library” is mainly children from two to eight years old.

A fundamental feature is that the books are published in Ukrainian. These are full-fledged literary editions with illustrations, translations, and additional materials for parents and educators.

What books appeared in Haifa: all 20 editions

Let’s start with the most unusual. Children are offered not only an introduction to traditional holidays but also a journey through the Jewish world — from Persia and Eastern Europe to China and modern America.

Hanukkah, Purim, Sukkot, and even dinosaurs

“The Persian Princess” by Barbara Diamond Goldin tells about a girl named Raya from a family of Iranian Jews. Together with her grandmother, she prepares for Purim: baking traditional cookies, collecting sweets for neighbors, trying on a costume, and participating in a festive performance.

“Hanukkah Upside Down” — a story about relatives living on different ends of the world. For one, Hanukkah is associated with snow, for the other — with the summer heat of New Zealand. Both are surprised by each other’s customs, but gradually understand: the tradition remains common, even if celebrated in completely different ways.

“Itzi and the Giant Menorah” by Richard Ungar refers to the folklore of Eastern European Jews. The action takes place in the legendary Chelm — a town whose residents are famous for their rather peculiar logic. When the townspeople receive a huge menorah, the most reasonable solution to the difficult situation is unexpectedly found by a little boy.

For the Israeli reader, there is an additional detail: the real Polish city of Chelm existed long before these tales appeared, but it was Jewish folklore that turned it into a kind of capital of good-natured eccentrics.

Another Hanukkah story — “A Year with Shaini“. The girl receives new shoes on Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year, and the shoe box accompanies her throughout the year. Through children’s adventures, the reader gets acquainted with the Jewish holiday calendar.

Two books are dedicated to Sukkot. “Sukkah in a Box” tells about the construction of a temporary festive dwelling, and “Watermelon on the Sukkah” — about children who decided to decorate their sukkah with a huge watermelon. The problem arises when it turns out that hanging such a weight under a roof of branches is not so easy.

There is also “Nebo’s Mask” — a story about Purim disguises and hidden miracles.

And in the book “Tyrannosaurus and His Tsoris” a dinosaur prepares a festive Passover seder, but guests are afraid to come to him. What if the host decides to have them for dinner?

Seder — a family ritual meal at the beginning of Passover, the holiday of the exodus of Jews from Egypt. And the word “tsoris” comes from Yiddish and means troubles, worries. In general, the dinosaur really has problems.

Friendship, kindness, and the ability to admit mistakes

Another part of the selection does not require familiarity with Jewish traditions to interest a child.

In the book “Frank and Bert” a little fox notices that his friend, a bear cub, is bad at playing hide and seek. He has to choose: continue to win or help his friend feel happy.

“A Hat for Mrs. Goldman” — a story about a woman who constantly knits warm hats for others, forgetting about herself. Little Sophia decides to correct this injustice.

Here children are explained the concept of mitzvah: it is not only a religious commandment but also a good deed done for another person.

“Sorry You’re Angry!” is dedicated to a completely different problem. A boy tries to apologize to a classmate but gradually realizes that true apologies are not an attempt to shift responsibility onto the offended person.

“Found” by Salina Yoon tells about a bear who finds a lost toy. He becomes attached to it, but now he needs to find the real owner.

“The Little House” — a retelling of a famous Jewish folk tale about a man who constantly feels that his house is too cramped. A wise relative’s advice makes him look at his usual life in a completely different way.

And “Kremer’s Cat Walk” by the famous Israeli writer Meir Shalev helps talk to children about offenses, stubbornness, friendship, and the consequences of one’s own behavior.

NANews — News of Israel | Nikk.Agency has already reported on the work of the Haifa center with children. In May 2024, its pupils participated in the international campaign “Children’s Hands for Peace”, sending symbolic messages of support to Ukrainian peers.

Stories about family memory, relocation, and the Jewish world

The book by Ruth Behar “The New Home of Tia Fortuna” stands out especially.

Its main character is an elderly woman from a family of Sephardic Jews who has to leave her home in Miami. Little Estrella helps her beloved aunt pack, and through this simple activity, the history of several generations forced to leave familiar places gradually unfolds.

Sephardim are a historical community of Jews whose ancestors lived on the Iberian Peninsula and, after being expelled at the end of the 15th century, settled in different countries.

Fortuna is left with family recipes, photographs, memories, words from different languages. A home can be lost. But traditions of a family continue to live with a person.

In this story, it is hard not to notice the parallel with the fate of Ukrainian families who packed their suitcases and went into the unknown after February 2022.

“Jin Yu and the Snake” takes the young reader to medieval Chinese Kaifeng, where a Jewish community existed. The plot is based on a Talmudic story about a good deed that unexpectedly changed a person’s fate.

“The Seven Good Years” refers to the Jewish literary tradition. A poor man is offered seven years of prosperity. But how to manage wealth? And what will remain with the family when the appointed time ends?

“What Yocha Wished For” — a humorous tale about wishes and the consequences of thoughtless requests. Magic here works quite differently than the main character expects.

“Onions and Garlic” — another folk plot. Familiar vegetables turn out to be an unexpected treasure where people have never seen them before.

And in “Shmulik Paints the Town” an Israeli artist is tasked with painting a park wall for Israel’s Independence Day. Inspiration does not come, but his dog Ezra discovers his own creative abilities.

All these stories are united not by the place of action and not even by the genre. They show the child how diverse the Jewish world is — its languages, geography, traditions, and people.

You can familiarize yourself with the works and materials for family reading in the official PJ Library catalog.

In the interview, she talked about her unique mission in Ukraine, the challenges of war, the promotion of Israeli culture, and personal experiences.

Regina Shafir is the wife of the Israeli ambassador to Ukraine, Michael Brodsky. Their children serve in the Israel Defense Forces, highlighting their connection to both countries.

Despite difficult circumstances, she continues to actively strengthen cultural ties between Israel and Ukraine by organizing lectures, exhibitions, and other events.

Painting Bomb Shelters and Working During the War

One of the most emotional moments of the interview was related to a project implemented by Regina Shafir and her colleague Zoya Sever. In November 2024, the artists transformed the bomb shelter of the children’s hospital “Okhmatdet” in Kyiv, turning it into a bright and cozy space.

We wrote about this – “Israeli Artists Transformed a Bomb Shelter in Kyiv’s Children’s Hospital ‘Okhmatdet’: Art for Children During the War”

“We wanted to give children the opportunity to escape, even in such difficult conditions. Art helps to cope with anxiety and fear,” shared Regina.

Israeli Culture in Ukraine

Despite challenging times, Regina actively works on promoting Israeli culture. In the interview, she detailed the “Month of Israeli Series” held in Ukraine at the end of 2024.

“Israeli culture is unique in its sentimentality. Even military and dramatic plots always touch the depths of the soul,” she noted.

Also discussed were:

• The role of new immigrants in cultural diplomacy.
• The complexities of interaction between Israeli and Ukrainian cultural environments.

Criticism of Israel and Personal Experiences

Regina openly expressed her views on the criticism directed at Israel by Ukrainians, emphasizing the importance of dialogue and mutual understanding.

A particularly touching moment was when Regina talked about her sons serving in the IDF, participating in military actions. “Death has become too close. It makes you appreciate every moment of life,” she shared.

Art and Public Opinion

An important part of the interview was Regina’s reflections on art in wartime conditions and the changing perception of the artist by society. She raised topics such as:

• Confronting public opinion.
• The impact of artificial intelligence on creativity.
• Time management and work on the cartoon “Hatul Tov.”

“An artist remains relevant always because art is a reflection of life and history,” emphasized Shafir.

Regina Shafir’s Cartoons

Regina detailed her cartoons, including works that address important social and cultural themes. Among the mentioned projects are her blog and animations that have already gained popularity in Israel and beyond.

Personal Notes: Life on the Move and the Inner Child

The interview concluded with light and heartfelt topics. Regina talked about the life of diplomats, her children, and how she manages to maintain her inner child despite all the challenges.

“I feel like a citizen of the world. And this helps me understand others and convey my experiences through art,” she shared.

Conclusion

Regina Shafir is a vivid example of a person who builds bridges between cultures through art, even in difficult times. Her creativity, personal example, and cultural mission strengthen ties between Israel and Ukraine.

You can learn more about Regina’s cartoons and her projects on her channel: https://www.youtube.com/@regishafir

Our website NANews — News of Israel continues to cover stories of people uniting our countries and shares unique examples of cultural interaction.

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Everyone knows the first strike. But they try to keep silent about the second

But almost no one talks about September 17, when the Red Army entered from the east. Poland found itself in a vise: the Reich pressed from the west, the USSR from the east. The two dictators had agreed in advance.

Secret protocol and division of the world

Two weeks before the war, Moscow and Berlin signed the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact. A secret appendix divided Eastern Europe into spheres of influence.

Germany took Western Poland. The USSR received Eastern Poland, the Baltics, and the right to claim part of Romania. For the Poles, this meant the end of the state and the beginning of chaos.

Repressions, deportations, and Katyn

The USSR called it a “liberation campaign.” In reality, it was mass arrests and forced relocations.

Thousands of families were taken to Siberia and Kazakhstan. The fate of officers and the intelligentsia was even more terrible. In the spring of 1940, the NKVD carried out the Katyn massacre: more than 20,000 people were shot in the back of the head.

What the President of Poland said in 2025

On September 1, 2025, Karol Nawrocki once again demanded reparations from Germany. For the destruction, for the blood, for the crimes of World War II.

But he did not say a word about Moscow. Not about Katyn, not about the deportations, not about the fact that millions of Poles suffered precisely at the hands of the USSR.

Today, Germany is Poland’s ally in the EU. Russia, however, continues the line of the USSR: war against Ukraine, threats to neighbors, imperial ambitions. And Warsaw’s silence in this context sounds duplicitous.

Consequences for Europe

The Soviet invasion showed that Stalin and Hitler acted as allies.

England and France declared war only on Germany. Stalin was given carte blanche. He occupied Lithuania, Latvia, and Estonia, attacked Finland, and seized part of Romania.

Thus, the map of Eastern Europe emerged, which largely remained until 1991.

A wake-up call for the whole world

The division of Poland became a chain reaction. Germany gained a rear for a strike on France. The USSR expanded its army and resources. The USA saw that it was not a local conflict, but a new world war.

International law turned out to be a fiction. The League of Nations was powerless. The lesson: when an aggressor is not stopped in time, he goes further.

Jewish tragedy

For the Jews of Poland, it was a nightmare from both sides.

The Nazis began the Holocaust: ghettos, deportations to camps, mass killings. And the Soviet authorities deported tens of thousands of families to Siberia. Jewish intelligentsia were arrested as “unreliable.”

One part of the people perished in the ovens of Auschwitz, another in the snows of Siberia. These are two different catastrophes, but both destroyed communities that had lived in Poland for centuries.

Forgotten dictator and dangerous parallels

The world remembers Hitler. His name has become a symbol of evil.

But many still call Stalin a “victor.” His portraits are carried at parades in Russia, and his crimes are justified. Yet he was the one who opened the road to war, destroyed millions of Ukrainians, Poles, Jews, and Balts.

Today, Russia continues the same policy. It justifies aggression with “historical territories,” invades Ukraine, and threatens Poland. This is a direct legacy of 1939.

Conclusions worth remembering

September 17, 1939, is a date that changed the map of Europe.

Poland became a victim of two dictators at once.

The Jewish people found themselves between the Holocaust and Soviet exile.

Europe then turned a blind eye to Moscow’s crimes. The price of silence was tens of millions of lives.

And today, the reminder of Stalin is as important as the memory of Hitler. Because forgotten evil always returns.

From the editors

We believe David Levin’s story deserves a place in our series “Jews from Ukraine”. This is the story of a man whose personal fate was closely entwined with the history of several generations of Jews in Ukraine and Israel, and whose public work extended far beyond an ordinary association of people from the same homeland.

In this article, we trace his childhood, family history, education and professional career in Soviet Uzbekistan. We recount his immigration in 1994, the history of the All-Israel Association of Immigrants from Ukraine, its local branches and the people with whom Levin worked.

Using Israeli state registry records, Knesset transcripts, materials from the Ukrainian Embassy and publications from different years, we examine his campaign for immigrants’ pension rights, assistance with housing and employment, involvement in public diplomacy, Ukrainian cultural festivals and many years of work to preserve the memory of Babyn Yar. We also explore his literary legacy, family, state awards, final years and the association’s work after his death.

The editors of NAnews — Nikk.Agency do not claim to offer an academic study or an exhaustive biography. What follows is a popular-history profile based on publicly available documents, publications and accounts by contemporaries.

Links to the sources and documents used are provided at the end of this article. Where information remains incomplete, contradictory or uncorroborated by independent evidence, we say so explicitly, distinguishing established facts from recollections and conjecture.

By Stas Shifer.

David Mikhailovich Levin

On October 12, 1938, David Mikhailovich Levin was born in Luhansk, then part of the Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic. His childhood was overshadowed by war. His father was killed at the front; his mother died when he was ten. He subsequently made his life in Uzbekistan, starting out in construction, obtaining an engineering education and, according to a biographical reference work, rising to a senior position in the agricultural sciences system.

In March 1994, already a mature man, Levin immigrated to Israel. Another major chapter of his life began there.

He became the long-serving chairman of the All-Israel Association of Immigrants from Ukraine, an organization that brought together dozens of local branches, addressed immigrants’ problems, developed cultural ties between the two countries and helped preserve the memory of the Holocaust.

Levin wrote poetry, published books and met politicians and diplomats. Yet one of the most revealing records of his life is neither a presidential award decree nor a literary biography, but a speech before the Knesset.

On July 1, 2008, he spoke to Ukrainian and Israeli parliamentarians about people who had worked in Ukraine for decades, moved to Israel and were still waiting for a resolution concerning their earned pensions. At the same meeting, Knesset member Michael Nudelman offered an estimate: of 50,000 immigrants from Ukraine (specifically people of pensionable age — editor’s note), around 32,000 were still alive by then. The figure came from Nudelman, not Levin, and was not a count of everyone awaiting pension payments.

Behind that number lay a problem familiar to many Israeli families who came during the great wave of immigration from the former Soviet Union: moving to a new country did not erase decades of employment in the old one.

David Levin died on March 12, 2025, aged 86. His life connected Ukraine, Uzbekistan and Israel — three different places, each of which formed an important part of his story.

Luhansk, 1938: the beginning of a life

David Mikhailovich Levin was born on October 12, 1938 in Luhansk.

An important historical clarification is needed: when he was born, the city was officially called Voroshilovgrad. The name Luhansk was restored in 1958, before the city was renamed again in the Soviet period. Biographies therefore use its modern name, although documents from 1938 would have used a different one.

Information on Levin’s birth appears in a biographical profile published by the All-Israel Association of Immigrants from Ukraine on the anniversary of his birth, and in the reference book Russian Literature in Israel.

His parents’ names, occupations and the family’s exact address have not yet been established from public documents.

When David was not yet three, the German-Soviet war began. His father went to the front and was killed.

Little is known of his father’s fate. No record has yet been found identifying his military unit, place of death, burial date or entry in wartime archives. It would therefore be wrong to claim that he died in any particular battle.

The war brought Levin’s family its first great tragedy. The second came after the war.

Orphaned at ten: his mother’s death and the move to Uzbekistan

His mother died when David was ten. If that age is accurate, this was around 1948.

A literary and biographical reference book preserves a detail missing from most brief accounts of Levin: after his mother’s death, the boy was taken in by her brother — David’s maternal uncle.

His subsequent life in Uzbekistan was connected with his uncle’s family.

The reference book describes a move to Central Asia “during evacuation.” There is, however, a chronological uncertainty: if the move followed his mother’s death around 1948, the war had already ended. The family may have left earlier, with the events presented out of sequence in the brief biography. Alternatively, “evacuation” may have been used to describe a longer period of resettlement.

No documents have yet been found that would allow us to choose between those explanations.

This matters. It is a reminder that the life of someone born in the USSR shortly before the war must often be reconstructed from later recollections rather than surviving family archives.

Nor have the exact places where Levin lived in Uzbekistan during his early years there been established.

But Uzbekistan was where he spent much of his life, from youth until his immigration to Israel.

Uzbekistan: construction worker, engineer and scientific administrator

For a long time, little was known about Levin’s Soviet years beyond the fact that he became a civil engineer.

The reference book Russian Literature in Israel allows us to reconstruct a more complex picture.

David first worked on construction sites. He combined work with study, working by day and attending classes in the evening. He eventually qualified as a civil engineer.

One particularly telling episode involves documents which, according to the reference book, he brought with him when he immigrated.

The first certified his qualification as a fourth-grade carpenter.

The second identified him as vice president of the Republican Uzbek Academy of Agricultural Sciences.

Between these two qualifications lay a remarkable professional journey.

The same source reports that Levin worked for many years at the All-Union Lenin Academy of Agricultural Sciences, known by the abbreviation VASKhNIL.

What was VASKhNIL, and why does it matter?

To Israeli readers, the name of this Soviet academy may sound like an unfamiliar acronym.

VASKhNIL was an extensive network of scientific institutions concerned with agriculture, plant breeding, agronomy, animal husbandry and other fields of agricultural science. Within the Soviet economy, these institutions were involved not only in research but also in production management, scientific infrastructure and state administration.

Uzbekistan played an important role in Soviet agriculture, particularly through cotton cultivation and its irrigation systems.

The report of Levin’s long service in the academy system therefore deserves attention. It suggests that his professional career probably extended far beyond ordinary construction work.

Accuracy is essential here: our information about his position as vice president of the republican academy comes from a biographical reference book. His appointment order, official identification and precise dates of service have not been published.

Nor have we established the name of the institution from which he graduated, the year he earned his degree, or the particular enterprises and institutions where he worked.

Even so, the known facts reveal an important aspect of his life: someone orphaned early went from manual labor and evening studies to a position of considerable administrative responsibility.

Family: a pediatrician wife, children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren

Brief official accounts of David Levin say very little about his private life.

The literary reference book, however, provides several valuable family details.

According to the biography published there, his wife worked as a pediatrician. The couple had two children.

When the reference book was compiled, Levin was said to have four grandchildren and three great-grandchildren. It also mentions his grandchildren’s service in the Israel Defense Forces, the IDF.

This is already the story of several generations of one family.

Levin himself was born in prewar Ukraine, grew up in Soviet Central Asia and moved to Israel after the collapse of the USSR. His descendants made their lives in Israeli society, including through military service.

The names of his wife, children and other relatives have not yet been established in verified public sources. It would therefore be wrong to publish names based on chance surname matches or social media profiles.

In a memorial post by Larisa Levkovskaya dated October 12, 2026, Levin’s family also features prominently. The author emphasizes that his loved ones continue to preserve his memory.

March 1994: immigration to Israel at age 55

David Levin immigrated to Israel in March 1994.

He was 55 years old.

This was the period of the great aliyah from the former Soviet Union. Following the USSR’s collapse, hundreds of thousands of people came to Israel, often leaving behind established careers, familiar social standing, homes and decades of employment.

Aliyah means Jewish immigration to Israel. Immigrants receive the status of oleh hadash — a new immigrant — and face challenges familiar to several generations of Israelis: learning Hebrew, obtaining recognition for qualifications, finding jobs, settling their families and dealing with housing and social-service issues.

For someone arriving at 55, these challenges could be particularly difficult.

The biographical reference book says that Levin came to regard Israel as his country. However, where he first lived, how he found employment and his early years of public activity still need to be reconstructed from documents.

Another distinction is important: March 1994 is the immigration date supported by biographical sources, not an established date for his election as association chairman.

Documents from later years confirm his leadership role.

David Levin belonged to a generation of immigrants who arrived after the State of Israel had already been established. Yet the links between Jews from Ukraine and the future Jewish state went back much further. One example is Leo Motzkin, born in Brovary, Ukraine, after whom the Israeli city of Kiryat Motzkin was named. NAnews devoted a separate article in the “Jews from Ukraine” series to his life.

The All-Israel Association of Immigrants from Ukraine: history, leadership and 35 branches

In Israel, “immigrants from Ukraine” refers to people whose families have ties to that country, regardless of whether they speak Ukrainian, Russian, Hebrew or Yiddish. Local associations brought together people from particular Ukrainian cities and districts, while the nationwide organization helped them address shared challenges after immigration.

The organization existed in Israel before Levin arrived

The All-Israel Association of Immigrants from Ukraine began long before David Mikhailovich Levin became its chairman. Different sources, however, give different dates for its establishment, which must not be confused.

An archived account of the Ukrainian community in Israel associated with the Ukrainian Embassy website gave 1979 as the founding year of a nonpartisan, nonprofit civic organization. This information also appears in a July 21, 2020, Ukrinform report, which lists its activities: helping new immigrants during their first months, overcoming language barriers, fostering social interaction and everyday adjustment, cultural integration, arts festivals and sports championships.

This is also reported on the Facebook page of the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry’s department for Ukrainians abroad.

“I sincerely congratulate you and the All-Israel Association of Immigrants from Ukraine under your leadership on the 32nd anniversary of the organization’s founding!”

Ukrainian organizations in Israel: what the Ukrainian Embassy archive preserves

An important document for reconstructing the association’s history is the archived Ukrainian Embassy page “Ukrainians in Israel”, preserved by the Internet Archive as it appeared in February 2017.

This was not a separate article about David Levin, but an official directory of civic organizations of Ukrainians abroad and people originating from Ukraine in the State of Israel. The embassy listed organizations active in the country, described their origins and purposes, named their leaders and published contact information.

The surviving page describes five organizations and cultural initiatives.

The Israeli Society “Ukrainians in Israel” was founded in 2002. Its chair was listed as Svitlana Glaz. The society was described as a nonpolitical organization promoting Ukrainian culture in Israel: literature, folk art, traditions, songs, dances and aspects of Ukrainian everyday life.

The All-Israel Association of Immigrants from Ukraine, headed by David Levin, held a distinct place on the list. The embassy stated that it was founded in 1979 and described it as a civic, nonpartisan, nonprofit organization.

Its main activities were helping new immigrants from Ukraine during their first years in Israel, adapting to new circumstances, overcoming language barriers, building social networks and managing everyday life. The association also encouraged social and cultural integration, helped immigrants develop their creative talents, and organized Hebrew-language classes, music and poetry workshops, arts festivals and sporting events.

The archive also preserved the organization’s contact details at the time: David Levin, 1 Agozi Street, P.O. Box 3416, Rishon Le-Zion 75133, Israel. Telephone — ***, fax — ***, email — ***. These are historical details, not contact information verified as current in 2026.

The civic organization Israeli Friends of Ukraine emerged in 2014 from the volunteer initiatives Israel Supports Ukraine and Israel Helps Maidan Wounded. Participants supported Ukraine’s Revolution of Dignity and helped people injured during the confrontations on the Maidan. The organization aimed to support Ukraine through volunteer work, cultural and social projects and other activities. The embassy named Anna Zharova and Vyacheslav Feldman among its leaders.

The Association of Jews from Transcarpathia represented another part of the Ukrainian-Israeli community. It was created by people who came to Israel after the Second World War and during immigration in the 1970s. Its primary objectives were preserving the historical and family heritage of Transcarpathian Jews and maintaining contacts among people from the same region in Israel and abroad, including Transcarpathia. Its leader was listed as Yitzhak Klein.

The fifth entry concerned the Ukrainian Culture Festival in Israel, held since 2011 on the initiative of an Israeli folklore theater. Its aims were to preserve Ukrainian cultural traditions, maintain spiritual ties between immigrants and their country of origin, and introduce Israeli audiences to Ukrainian art. Both Israeli and Ukrainian artists took part. The festival’s artistic director and the theater’s director was listed as Lena Dzeiko.

The embassy page thus portrayed not a single organization but an entire civic environment: longstanding hometown associations, cultural societies, immigrant organizations and new volunteer movements that emerged after the events of 2014 in Ukraine.

It is also notable that a separate website for Israel’s Ukrainian community was established in late 2015. The embassy gave its address as sglaz2.wix.com/ukraina and explained that it was intended mainly to cover cultural events in the Ukrainian community. The editors invited Ukrainian poets, prose writers and anyone interested to contribute. It was a community website, however, not an established independent website belonging to Levin’s association.

For Levin’s biography, the archived page matters for several reasons. It officially confirms his leadership, documents specific areas of the association’s work and places the organization alongside other participants in Ukrainian civic life in Israel.

There is also an important historical question. The embassy gave 1979 as the association’s founding year, whereas the Israeli state registry records the registration of legal entity No. 580131480 on July 17, 1988. Another document confirms that its name was changed on November 29, 1995: a society assisting people from Kyiv became an association for immigrants from across Ukraine.

The discrepancy also appears in Ukrinform’s July 21, 2020, report. It describes congratulations to Levin and the association on their 32nd anniversary, which points to 1988, while the historical background again gives 1979.

A civic movement may have existed before formal registration, or the dates may refer to different stages in the organization’s development. Without the founding documents, this remains conjecture.

One fact, however, is documented: under David Levin, the All-Israel Association of Immigrants from Ukraine was part of a much wider network of civic ties between Ukraine and Israel. It worked alongside cultural societies, hometown associations, volunteer initiatives and artistic groups, while retaining its own focus on supporting immigrants and people originating from Ukraine.

The Israeli registry of nonprofit organizations records the registration on July 17, 1988 of a civic association later named התאחדות יוצאי אוקראינה בישראל (ע״ר) — “Association of Immigrants from Ukraine in Israel.”

Its registration number is 580131480. The registered address is 3 Sde Yitzhak Street, Rishon LeZion.

Rishon LeZion, south of Tel Aviv, became one of Israel’s major centers of Russian-speaking immigration.

But the organization’s legal history did not end there.

The Israeli nonprofit registrar’s records show that the organization officially changed its name on November 29, 1995.

Originally it was called:

עמותה למען יוצאי קייב בישראל — “Society for the Assistance of Immigrants from Kyiv in Israel.”

After the name change, it became:

התאחדות יוצאי אוקראינה — “Association of Immigrants from Ukraine.”

This is an important detail. An organization initially oriented toward people who had arrived from Kyiv adopted a name embracing immigrants from across Ukraine.

David Levin immigrated to Israel in March 1994. Thus, by the time he arrived, the registered organization had existed for almost six years, and the name change took place about one year and eight months after his immigration.

Whether Levin participated in the decision to change the name is still unknown to us.

Also not established are the names of the organization’s founders in 1988, its first chairman and the original composition of its board. These details should be sought in the nonprofit’s registration file, particularly the founding documents and minutes of general meetings.

There are other clues. In the Knesset on February 22, 2016, as translated by MK Tali Ploskov, Levin said that the organization had existed for around forty years. Funding records for 2017 refer to the association’s 40th anniversary. Yet in July 2020, Ukraine’s first deputy foreign minister, Emine Dzhaparova, personally congratulated Levin and the association on its 32nd anniversary — consistent with 1988. The same Ukrinform report, meanwhile, separately gives 1979.

Thus, 1979 appears in the community history, July 17, 1988, is the legal registration date, and November 29, 1995, is the date of the name change. The anniversary claims made between 2016 and 2020 are not entirely consistent. An early civic initiative may have preceded nonprofit registration, but there is as yet no documentary proof of legal continuity or the exact founding date.

When did David Levin become chairman?

We do not yet know the precise date on which David Levin was elected chairman of the All-Israel Association of Immigrants from Ukraine.

There is, however, an official Ukrainian document confirming that he already held the position in 2007.

On November 12, 2007, Ukrainian President Viktor Yushchenko signed Decree No. 1090/2007 honoring individuals who had made significant contributions to Ukrainian-Israeli relations.

David Mikhailovich Levin received the Order of Merit, Third Class.

The decree identifies him as chairman of the Association of Immigrants from Ukraine in Israel.

The same document honored two other people: Second World War veteran and partisan Leonid Berenshtein, awarded the Order for Courage, First Class, and historian Shimon Redlich, awarded the Order of Merit, Third Class.

Consequently, Levin was already heading the association by November 12, 2007, at the latest. He may have led it much earlier, but no public source has yet allowed us to determine the year of his election.

July 1, 2008: 35 branches and representatives from 24 cities in the Knesset

Especially valuable information on the organization’s size survives in the transcript of a meeting held at the Knesset on July 1, 2008.

A delegation of Ukrainian parliamentarians and civic leaders visited Israel’s parliament. The Israeli side included Knesset members, representatives of the Ukrainian Embassy and heads of civic organizations.

Among those organizing and attending the meeting were Knesset member Michael Nudelman, who worked to strengthen Israeli-Ukrainian interparliamentary relations, and Ukrainian parliamentarian Oleksandr Feldman.

David Levin spoke as chairman of the national association. He reported that it had 35 local branches across Israel, from north to south.

When Nudelman asked how many cities the organization’s representatives had come from, Levin replied: from 24 cities; the others were still expected.

These are two different figures: 35 was the association’s total number of branches; 24 was the number of cities represented at the meeting when Levin spoke.

The meeting addressed relations between Israel and Ukraine, cultural ties, Holocaust remembrance and the situation of immigrants who retained pension entitlements from Ukraine.

Levin spoke of the importance of remembering Babyn Yar, concerts and events where Ukrainian speech and song could be heard alongside Hebrew and Yiddish, and the role of civic contacts between the two countries.

He paid particular attention to Ukrainian pensions for people who had moved permanently to Israel. Many had worked in Ukraine for decades, but the question of receiving their earned pensions remained unresolved.

The transcript also mentions Leonid Yefimovich Berenshtein, a former partisan detachment commander and member of the association’s leadership. Levin conveyed his greetings to the participants because Berenshtein could not attend in person.

Full transcript of the Knesset meeting of July 1, 2008.

Who headed the local branches?

The 2008 parliamentary transcript helps identify some of the organization’s representatives.

Kiryat Shmona. Yaakov Eisenberg is identified as chairman of the local branch. Kiryat Shmona lies in Israel’s far north, near the Lebanese border.

Ashdod. Roman Kaon is named as chairman of the local branch. Ashdod is a major Mediterranean port city with a substantial Russian-speaking community.

Jerusalem. The 2008 participant list includes V. Feinman as a branch representative and also names Alex Veksler from Jerusalem. A separate parliamentary committee record dated February 12, 2008 identifies Valery Fainer (V. Feiner) as head of the Jerusalem branch and an association coordinator. His participation alongside Levin is recorded again in 2009 parliamentary records. These materials help clarify the full name and position of one of the local leaders.

Dimona. Vladlen Kapon was among the association’s representatives. Dimona is in the Negev desert region of southern Israel.

Ashkelon. The transcript mentions Yuri Zamoshchik from Ashkelon. The city is also mentioned in a discussion of possible meetings between the Ukrainian delegation and immigrants. His position is not given, however, so he cannot yet be confirmed as a branch chairman.

The parliamentary record also names two regional coordinators: Yosef Alterman, responsible for northern cities, and Nahum Israel, who coordinated the association’s work in central Israel.

This shows that the organization had regional coordination in addition to city representatives. At another parliamentary meeting in 2009, Levin and Fainer appear among the invited representatives of civic organizations discussing the role of Jews in the fight against Nazism.

January 2012: from Kiryat Shmona to Dimona

In January 2012, the newspaper Jewish Kyiv, No. 23, published an article about the work of the All-Israel Association of Immigrants from Ukraine.

It reported that the organization’s network covered 35 Israeli cities, from Kiryat Shmona in the north to Dimona in the south.

Besides those two cities, it specifically named Jerusalem, Tel Aviv, Haifa and Beersheba.

The newspaper also noted that the association included the Vinnytsia hometown association and the “Bershad” hometown association.

Hometown associations brought together people connected by their origins to particular Ukrainian cities and districts. They should not therefore be counted as additional Israeli city branches.

According to information published at the time, more than 35,000 people were registered with the association after submitting registration applications.

The newspaper described the association as one of the large civic organizations representing immigrants from Ukraine. It covered the defense of their interests, memorial events, cultural ties with Ukraine and efforts to combat antisemitism.

The same issue reported that Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych had sent David Levin a personal New Year’s greeting.

Jewish Kyiv, No. 23, January 2012, page 12.

Other cities identified through documents

No complete list of all 35 branches in 2008–2012 has yet been found in the available sources. Further Israeli publications and documents, however, identify several more cities and local leaders.

Or Akiva. In a notice published on March 21, 2012, the association’s Or Akiva branch announced a group trip to Kyiv planned for May–June that year. Participants were offered subsidized airline tickets, the possibility of sanatorium treatment and help finding accommodation.

Or Akiva branch notice, March 2012.

Karmiel. In the transcript of a Knesset meeting on July 24, 2017, Lev Tsimkovsky is named chairman of the association’s Karmiel branch.

Arad. At the same meeting, Lev Groisberg is identified as chairman of the Arad branch.

The two cities are in different parts of Israel: Karmiel is in the Galilee in the north, while Arad is in the south, near the Dead Sea.

Transcript of the Knesset meeting of July 24, 2017.

Rishon LeZion. In April 2021, the association’s board published an obituary for Pavel Shataylo, one of its longstanding leaders.

The notice said Shataylo had organized the association’s Rishon LeZion branch and become its first chairman, then served as deputy chairman of the nationwide association for about a quarter of a century.

It also noted that he was born in Odesa, survived wartime evacuation, lost his father during the Second World War and later became a prominent lawyer.

In memory of Pavel Shataylo — association board statement of April 8, 2021.

Bat Yam. In municipal records from 2025, Maria Foxman Till is named head of the association’s local branch.

The municipality praised her work with Russian-speaking children, organization of cultural events, literary activities and assistance to new immigrants. That year she received the title of honorary resident of Bat Yam.

Official publication by the Bat Yam municipality.

Documentary traces of the association’s work can be found in other cities as well.

In Rehovot, the association, registration No. 580131480, is mentioned in the minutes of a municipal committee on nonprofit support dated November 23, 2023. The calculation includes ₪4,427; the document confirms that financial support was considered, but not that the money was actually transferred. The municipal archives of Nazareth Illit, now Nof HaGalil, likewise mention the association in discussions of municipal support.

But receipt of municipal support, or the mere mention of an organization in city documents, does not by itself prove that a separate local branch existed.

Thus, sources from various years identify 12 Israeli cities with direct evidence of branches or their representatives:

Kiryat Shmona, Haifa, Tel Aviv, Jerusalem, Beersheba, Dimona, Ashdod, Or Akiva, Rishon LeZion, Bat Yam, Karmiel and Arad.

Ashkelon remains another probable point in this network. Rehovot and Nof HaGalil are confirmed as cities connected to the association’s activities, but not as locations of definitively established independent branches.

The documents also cover different periods — from 2008 to 2025. The list should not therefore be presented as the complete official roster of all 35 branches operating simultaneously under Levin.

Other staff and representatives: evidence from the Knesset

The minutes of the Aliyah, Absorption and Diaspora Committee meeting of June 23, 2014, on assistance to Holocaust refugees, identify David Levin as the association’s chairman and Bina Samkhova (בינה סמחובה) as its press secretary. Other participants included representatives of government agencies, the pension-rights movement, veterans’ organizations and Yad Vashem.

In parliamentary documents dated July 24, 2017, Arkady Naidits appears alongside the leaders of the Karmiel and Arad branches, described as a branch head without a reliably identified city in that particular record. The invitation list for a 2018 discussion of a memorial project also includes Mikhail Malkovsky as an association member. Appearing on a participant list establishes a civic connection but does not prove involvement in specific decisions.

2016: Levin again speaks of 35 branches

On February 22, 2016, David Levin spoke at a parliamentary committee meeting discussing elderly immigrants who had survived the Holocaust, wartime evacuation and the Second World War.

He found it difficult to speak in Hebrew, so he spoke in Russian.

Knesset member Tali Ploskov, who chaired the meeting, conveyed the main points of his remarks to the other participants.

According to Levin’s words as she relayed them, the association had 35 branches across the country and around 35,000 people were connected to its work.

A substantial share of those it helped were Holocaust survivors, wartime refugees and veterans.

Levin pointed out that many elderly immigrants had limited Hebrew. The language barrier made it difficult for them to deal with Bituach Leumi, Israel’s National Insurance Institute, and municipal social services.

He also spoke of the need to help people get to know Israel, arrange trips, observe traditional holidays and maintain intergenerational ties.

Many elderly immigrants from Ukraine continued to live largely in a Russian-speaking environment, while their children — and especially their grandchildren — had become much more integrated into Israeli society.

Housing costs were another problem: for some elderly people, a large proportion of government benefits went toward rent.

Association representatives emphasized that a shortage of funds and staff limited what volunteers could do.

Transcript of the Knesset meeting of February 22, 2016.

The speech is also significant because the figures of 35 branches and roughly 35,000 people were heard again in parliament eight years after the 2008 meeting.

What financial reports and the organizational registry reveal

The Israeli registry also allows us to trace certain areas of the association’s work.

Its officially stated purposes include preserving the memory of those murdered at Babyn Yar, assisting people from Kyiv, and establishing and supporting scientific, educational, cultural, artistic and civic projects.

The funding records identify specific cultural initiatives. Moreover, the organization’s financial history extends much further back than the published reports for 2017–2019.

In 2006, an entry for association No. 580131480 appears in an Israeli government list of allocated funds under the Ministry of Absorption, with an amount of ₪40,000. The stated purpose was to participate in commemorating those who died during the Second World War and to hold a ceremony at Yad Vashem. This documents a budget allocation; evidence that the full amount was actually paid has not yet been found.

In 2017, for example, the published registry information lists receipts of ₪29,886 for anniversary events and a Ukrainian culture festival, plus ₪11,535 for a literary almanac and meetings with writers.

In 2018, a further ₪11,100 appears for a literary publication and meetings between Israeli and Ukrainian authors.

In 2019, the records show ₪28,157 for the activities of the Shahar theater and the Ukrainian-language literary and civic publication Vidlunnia (“Echo”). These sums represent receipts recorded in available summary registry data, not independently established costs of each event. Until primary accounting records are examined, they must be treated accordingly.

These figures complement Levin’s parliamentary appearances: the association’s cultural activities were not merely subjects of public statements; they were also reflected in its financial reporting.

Registration and financial data for organization No. 580131480.

Available summary registry data for 2025 lists 35 nonprofit members and 169 volunteers, no paid employees and annual income of ₪39,493. In October 2026, the Taagidim database showed the organization as a registered nonprofit with certificates of proper management (ניהול תקין) for 2026 and 2027. This describes its legal and reporting status, but does not prove that all 35 former city branches were still active.

At the same time, an older Israeli archival data extract associated with 2021 listed 18,275 members and 183 volunteers. This sharp difference may reflect incomparable counting categories, changes in reporting or organizational structure; the figures cannot be meaningfully compared without the original reports.

Several distinct indicators must therefore be kept separate.

35 branches is the number of territorial divisions reported by David Levin.

More than 35,000 people is the association’s reported number of registered participants in a 2012 newspaper article. These figures were supplied by the civic organization and reproduced in the press; they are not government census data.

35 nonprofit members in the 2025 summary reporting is a legal indicator, not equivalent to the number of branches, all participants or people receiving assistance. Nor can it automatically be compared with the 18,275 members recorded in an older data extract.

No complete named list of ordinary nonprofit members, the founders in 1988 or the original board was found in the open materials reviewed. The names of authorized signatories and members of a later board, however, are published in GuideStar’s officeholders section and appear at the end of this article.

To identify the missing people, it is necessary to examine the association’s registration file held by Israel’s nonprofit registrar, including the original application, bylaws, general meeting minutes and documents concerning the 1995 name change.

Official Israeli Ministry of Justice service for obtaining nonprofit documents

An association connecting two societies

The documents show that David Levin’s work was far broader than simply running a hometown association.

The All-Israel Association of Immigrants from Ukraine worked on pension provision and social protection, helped elderly people navigate Israeli institutions, supported cultural projects, preserved the memory of Babyn Yar and developed civic ties between Israel and Ukraine.

Behind its network of 35 branches stood real people: local association leaders, regional coordinators, volunteers and participants in memorial ceremonies and cultural events.

The scale of this activity is corroborated not only by the association’s own publications, but also by Knesset transcripts, Israeli municipal documents, nonprofit registration records and official Ukrainian award decrees.

The question of exactly when David Levin became chairman and who led the organization before him remains open. It is established that he held the post no later than November 2007.

His documented achievement was his many years of leadership of an organization combining social assistance, cultural remembrance and relations between the two countries.

Pensions from Ukraine: why Levin spoke in the Knesset

Pensions were among the most pressing issues in David Levin’s public work.

Many immigrants from the former USSR arrived in Israel shortly before or after retirement age. They might have worked for decades in their countries of origin, but payment of pensions earned there after moving abroad depended on legislation and international agreements.

Israel’s social security system could not automatically replace all pension rights accrued in another state.

The issue was therefore not about abstract diplomatic formalities, but the everyday lives of elderly people.

A parliamentary estimate of 32,000 people and Levin’s demands

At the meeting on July 1, 2008, it was a reference to 32,000 surviving immigrants from Ukraine made by Knesset member Michael Nudelman. He estimated that 18,000 of the 50,000 people under discussion had already died. These were a parliamentarian’s figures, not an independent census or an exact count of those awaiting pension payments. David Levin himself reminded participants of the decades immigrants had worked in Ukraine, urged Ukrainian parliamentarians to support a future pension agreement and expressed the hope that people would live to receive the benefits they had earned.

His remarks contain a revealing incident: recalling an earlier pension debate, Levin admitted that he could no longer bear endless discussions and demanded a move from words to decisions. This is a rare firsthand record that illuminates not just his position, but his manner of public engagement.

The online archive has a technical peculiarity: the page heading refers to a meeting in 2009, but the transcript itself is dated July 1, 2008. We use the date of the actual document when citing his remarks.

Appeals, meetings and negotiations

Materials from the pension-rights movement report that in 2008 Levin appealed to Israeli Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni to accelerate a resolution of the pension issue. There is independent evidence as well: on November 23, 2008, the Israeli news outlet Ynet reported his meeting with Tzipi Livni, then head of the Kadima party, alongside leaders of other immigrant and veterans’ organizations.

Levin told journalists that people who came to Israel at approximately 45 or older had too little time to build up an adequate Israeli pension. He wanted promises of assistance to become concrete decisions. The meeting also addressed conversion to Judaism, the situation of new immigrants and the effects of the economic crisis. This is his own statement in the Hebrew-language press, not a later retelling.

During Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych’s visit to Israel in 2011, pensions again became a subject of public discussion. The newspaper Jewish Kyiv reported that Levin, as association chairman, had been invited to an official dinner attended by the leaders of the two countries.

The same publication reported discussions of Ukrainian pensions at the interstate level.

It would, however, be wrong to claim that Levin single-handedly secured the subject’s inclusion in the talks. Several civic organizations, activists and politicians worked on the pension issue.

In the same issue, the newspaper ran another article with the sharp headline “Israel’s Ukrainians Offended by Ukrainian President — Viktor Yanukovych Ignored Israel’s Ukrainian Community”.

The newspaper recalled that Israeli President Shimon Peres had met the local Jewish community on a visit to Ukraine. Previous Ukrainian presidents visiting Israel had, according to the paper, followed a similar tradition.

During Yanukovych’s visit, however, there was no general meeting with representatives of Israel’s Ukrainian community. The newspaper called it an unprecedented omission and noted the dissatisfaction of immigrants from Ukraine, whose number it estimated at more than half a million. The latter figure was a newspaper estimate, not a verified census result.

In December 2013, a report in a civic archive recorded Levin’s appearance at a Knesset conference devoted to pensions from countries of origin. This event should be distinguished from the extensively documented 2008 meeting.

Sources: Jewish Kyiv, No. 22, December 2011; archives of the immigrant pension-rights movement; Open Knesset.

David Levin’s story is not just the biography of someone from Ukraine who rebuilt his life in Israel. Behind his long public career were problems familiar to tens of thousands of Israeli families: pensions, housing, care for elderly parents, preserving language and ties to the country of origin. For the editors of NAnews — Israel News | Nikk.Agency, this story is especially important because it shows the role that immigrants from Ukraine have played, and continue to play, in Israeli society. Their contribution is measured not only by individual achievements, but also by work on behalf of others facing similar circumstances.

Beyond pensions: employment, housing and help for new immigrants

The association’s work was not limited to older people.

According to the organization’s own materials, under Levin it assisted new immigrants, worked on housing issues and cooperated with municipalities, Knesset members and government agencies.

Particularly important evidence emerged after the beginning of Russian aggression against Ukraine in 2014, when immigration increased.

On June 8, 2015, the Knesset’s Aliyah, Absorption and Diaspora Committee discussed preparations to receive immigrants from Ukraine and France.

Levin was listed among the invited participants as chairman of the Association of Immigrants from Ukraine.

The meeting discussed shortages of public housing, employment difficulties and the need to help newcomers not only upon arrival but also after their initial adjustment. Avraham Sharnopolsky, deputy leader of the civic movement “Front of Dignity”, specifically cited Levin’s association. He said it had 35 branches whose volunteers helped people find jobs and rental housing, but that the branches had virtually no funding. This was testimony from a representative of another organization, not Levin’s own statement, and it independently corroborates the network’s activity in 2015.

Israeli readers will recognize the problem: sal klita, the initial absorption allowance, helps in the first stage but cannot by itself resolve long-term housing, employment and income problems.

Levin represented an organization working precisely at this level — between people’s everyday problems and government institutions.

Source: Knesset committee transcript of June 8, 2015.

People-to-people diplomacy: Ukraine and Israel through personal connections

Another area of Levin’s activity was relations between Ukraine and Israel.

He cooperated with the Ukrainian Embassy and participated in cultural events and meetings with diplomats, lawmakers and representatives of civic organizations.

His name appears in Ukrainian diplomatic mission materials among participants in events devoted to bilateral relations.

For example, the embassy archive preserves a report on an evening in Bat Yam in 2017 marking an anniversary of Israeli-Ukrainian diplomatic relations. Levin and theater director Grigory Grumberg were among those mentioned.

Archived Ukrainian Embassy report.

In his 2008 speech, Levin stressed cultural exchanges and interpersonal ties. He spoke about visits by Ukrainian artists, concerts, meetings and trips by Israelis to Ukraine.

Such work is often described as people-to-people diplomacy.

It is neither formal diplomatic service nor negotiations between governments. It consists of ties maintained through communities, cultural societies, performing groups, families and personal acquaintances.

For Levin, the Ukrainian origins of Israeli citizens were not simply memories of the past, but a basis for practical cooperation.

Ukrainian culture in Israel: festivals, theaters and books

Among the association’s most visible projects were Ukrainian culture festivals in Israel.

The first festival reported in contemporary news coverage took place in Rehovot in 2011. The All-Israel Association of Immigrants from Ukraine, under David Levin, was among its organizers.

The gala concert was called “Dnipro Stars”.

By August 2013, the third festival had taken place.

A detailed account survives in a publication by the Vaad of Ukraine — the Association of Jewish Organizations and Communities of Ukraine.

The festival was supported by Israel’s Ministry of Culture, the Ukrainian Embassy, the Rehovot municipality and other partners.

Ukrainian and Israeli performers appeared on stage.

They included the vocal ensemble Pikkardiyska Tertsiya, Lviv Opera soloist Oleh Lykhach, singer Liudmyla Yasynska, and the Israeli folk group Tapuach BeDvash led by Anatoly Geiko, as well as dance troupes and performers of Ukrainian and Jewish songs.

The work of the festival’s artistic director, Lena Dzeiko, received particular recognition.

The concert was hosted in Russian and Hebrew, and its program combined Ukrainian folk songs, klezmer music, contemporary compositions and dance.

This was an important feature of the festivals: they were intended not only for immigrants from Ukraine, but for a broader Israeli audience.

According to Levin’s own materials, by 2018 the association had held six Ukrainian cultural festivals. This number comes from his account of the organization’s work and still requires separate verification against the programs of all six events.

In addition to festivals, the association’s materials mention the theatrical projects Shahar and Portrait, meetings with writers and performers, cultural and educational initiatives, the magazine Vidlunnia (“Echo”), the Ukrainian Abetka (“Alphabet”), and mobile consular appointments.

The exact dates, organizers and archived programs of some of these projects have yet to be reconstructed. They nevertheless illustrate the breadth of the civic community in which Levin worked.

Source: Vaad of Ukraine — Ukrainian Embassy reception and third Ukrainian Culture Festival, August 2013.

Babyn Yar: a memory he preserved for many years

A special place in Levin’s public work was occupied by the memory of Babyn Yar.

Babyn Yar is a ravine in Kyiv where mass murders took place during the Nazi occupation. On September 29–30, 1941 alone, 33,771 Jews were shot there, according to a contemporary German report. The Nazis later murdered other people there as well.

For Jews from Ukraine, Babyn Yar became one of the central symbols of the Holocaust. For Israel, it is part of the shared memory of Europe’s destroyed Jewish communities.

For Levin’s generation, this history carried particular significance because the war had destroyed his own family.

2006: “Book of Life” and Holocaust survivor testimonies

Even before the earliest well-documented ceremonies involving Levin, the association was mentioned in connection with the “Book of Life” (ספר החיים) project. An account in Hebrew of the history of Amigour — a Jewish Agency housing organization serving older people — states that in 2006 Amigour, together with Yad Vashem, the All-Israel Association of Immigrants from Ukraine and the Ministry of Absorption, took part in documenting the lives of Holocaust survivors living in Amigour housing.

Amigour’s own website confirms the project itself: more than 50 individual books were prepared containing Holocaust survivors’ memories, photographs and poems, along with a collected volume of 1,000 life stories presented to Yad Vashem at a ceremony in September 2006. The Hebrew-language account mentioning the association connects the event to the 65th anniversary of the mass murder of Jews in Ukraine at Babyn Yar, Bohdanivka and Drobytsky Yar. The National Library of Israel also has a bibliographic record of a collection of reminiscences by Amigour residents. However, the association’s involvement is mentioned in an account rather than an organizers’ agreement we have located; David Levin’s personal contribution to preparing the books has not been established separately.

2009: a ceremony at Yad Vashem

In September 2009, a report on a Babyn Yar memorial ceremony in Jerusalem explicitly identified Levin as the association’s chairman and the event’s host.

The ceremony was held at Yad Vashem, Israel’s national Holocaust memorial and research complex.

Report on the 2009 ceremony.

Over the years, the association’s participation in such events became an established tradition.

2013: an official memorial program

An official Yad Vashem invitation to a ceremony on September 11, 2013 survives, marking the 72nd anniversary of the murder of Jews in Ukraine, including Babyn Yar and other mass shooting sites.

The program identifies Levin as chairman of the association, alongside Absorption Minister Sofa Landver, Yad Vashem chairman Avner Shalev, Jewish Agency chairman Natan Sharansky and Ukrainian Ambassador Hennadii Nadolenko. The invitation specified a memorial ceremony in the Hall of Remembrance at 3:00 p.m. and a gathering in the auditorium at 3:30 p.m.. This is therefore a dated document issued by the organizer, not merely a later recollection.

2016: Babyn Yar, Kyiv, the tragedy’s 75th anniversary

On September 29, 2016, David Levin was in Kyiv for events marking the 75th anniversary of the Babyn Yar massacre.

This is confirmed by more than written reports.

The UNIAN photo archive preserves image No. 736253, which identifies Levin as chairman of the All-Israel Association of Immigrants from Ukraine.

The photograph identifies the date, location and photographer — Oleksandr Synytsia.

UNIAN photographic record of September 29, 2016.

This photograph is among the most valuable visual records of his life.

2018: memorial work and public debate

On June 19, 2018, Levin appears on the attendee list for a Knesset meeting about the Babyn Yar memorial center project, a museum and educational center commemorating the Jews of Ukraine and other parts of the former USSR. Invitees included Natan Sharansky and representatives of Yad Vashem, Israel’s Foreign Ministry and the memorial project team. The account in the transcript of being detained on the way to Babyn Yar belongs to Sharansky, not Levin; it must not be attributed to David’s personal biography.

That year, the collection Minsk Ghetto: 75 Years Later published Levin’s essay “Activities of the All-Israel Association of Immigrants from Ukraine and the Continuity of Holocaust Remembrance”.

The title alone shows that Levin sought not merely to organize commemorations but also to understand the association’s work as a way of transmitting historical memory to future generations.

2019, 2021 and 2023: the tradition continues

On October 7, 2019, Yad Vashem held an event commemorating the murdered Jews of Kyiv. The memorial institution’s materials again mention Levin’s participation.

Yad Vashem — event of October 7, 2019.

In September 2021, for the 80th anniversary of the Babyn Yar massacre, Levin attended a Knesset gathering reported by Israel’s Ynet. A central participant was Mikhail Sidko, a survivor of the mass killings at Babyn Yar. Those invited included Knesset Speaker Mickey Levy, Natan Sharansky, Yad Vashem chairman Dani Dayan, Colette Avital and Levin, as chairman of the association of immigrants from Ukraine.

On September 20, 2023, he once again attended a commemorative ceremony at Yad Vashem.

Those present included Israeli Minister of Aliyah and Integration Ofir Sofer, Ukrainian Ambassador Yevgen Korniychuk, Natan Sharansky, Holocaust survivors and members of the public.

The ceremony was also covered by NAnews.

NAnews: Babyn Yar remembrance ceremony at Yad Vashem, September 2023.

Levin’s contribution to the remembrance of Babyn Yar can thus be traced in documents at least from 2009 through 2023.

Why this work mattered

The history of Babyn Yar is not only the history of a crime committed in 1941.

In Soviet times, the Jewish identity of many victims was often subsumed into the general formula of “Soviet citizens killed.” Restoring the memory of who was murdered and why became a separate civic undertaking.

Efforts to preserve the memory of Babyn Yar began long before Levin’s public activities in Israel. In September 1966, Kyiv residents gathered spontaneously at the mass shooting site despite pressure from Soviet authorities. They included writer Viktor Nekrasov and literary scholar Ivan Dziuba. NAnews has examined the history of the first civic commemorations at Babyn Yar, the surviving film footage and the Soviet authorities’ response in detail.

Another important context is the fate of Anatoly Kuznetsov’s book Babyn Yar, whose text was subjected to Soviet censorship. In 2026, NAnews reported on a new Ukrainian edition of the work.

Levin’s civic work belonged to this wider history of restoring names, testimonies and the memory of Ukraine’s destroyed Jewish communities.

David Levin the poet: from teenage verses to six books

The public figure David Levin also had another life — a literary one.

According to the reference book Russian Literature in Israel, he began writing poetry as a teenager. Some early works were published in newspapers.

But it was only after immigration that he began seriously pursuing poetry.

This means his literary activity developed in a new way after age fifty, at the same time as he was actively involved in civic life.

Levin belonged to the Union of Russian-Speaking Writers of Israel. In 2014, his name appeared in accounts of literary meetings of Russian-speaking Israeli authors.

In 2019, according to the reference book, he won a competition for the best poem and short story organized by the writers’ association. His poems appeared in the collection Poetry.

The same source says Israeli composers set his poems to music.

Levin was not the only writer whose life connected Ukraine and Israel. Haim Hazaz, born in the Ukrainian village of Sydorovychi, had a very different life and became the first recipient of the Israel Prize for Literature. Hazaz wrote in Hebrew, while Levin wrote mainly in Russian. What connects them is not a literary school but a continuing link to Ukraine’s Jewish past.

David Levin’s six books

2004 — Melodies of the Soul. Poetry collection; Lira Publishing House, Jerusalem.

2007 — Love Like a Bright Comet. Poetry collection; Lira Publishing House, Jerusalem.

2013 — On the Sails of Love. Poetry collection; Medial Publishing House, Rishon LeZion.

2014 — Muse. Poetry collection; Medial Publishing House, Rishon LeZion.

2017 — My Love, Druskininkai. Poetry collection; Medial Publishing House, Rishon LeZion.

2019 — Society and Community. Nonfiction commentary; Medial Publishing House, Rishon LeZion.

Bibliographic source: Russian Literature in Israel, entry “David Levin,” p. 160.

The existence of the book Love Like a Bright Comet is also confirmed by the international library catalog WorldCat, OCLC 782126465.

The first five books are poetry collections. The final one, Society and Community, is described as a work of nonfiction commentary.

This distinction matters: Levin’s literary legacy was not limited to verses about love, emotions and personal life. He also addressed society, the community, remembrance and public service.

A memorial article published by the association quotes lines he wrote about Babyn Yar. The specific book in which they first appeared, however, has not yet been established.

A comprehensive literary study would require copies of all six books, their title pages, ISBNs where available, circulation details and independent reviews.

Two Ukrainian orders: what the presidential decrees confirm

David Levin received state decorations from Ukraine.

And in this case the evidence is not limited to recollections or newspaper reports: both awards are confirmed by specific presidential decrees.

November 12, 2007 — Order of Merit, Third Class

On November 12, 2007, Ukrainian President Viktor Yushchenko signed Decree No. 1090/2007, “On Awarding State Decorations of Ukraine.” It cited major personal contributions to the development of Ukrainian-Israeli ties and many years of productive civic activity.

Three people representing different aspects of Israel’s civic and historical life received awards.

David Mikhailovich Levin, chairman of the Association of Immigrants from Ukraine in Israel, received the Order of Merit, Third Class.

Leonid Yefimovich Berenshtein, a Second World War veteran and member of both the association’s Central Board and Israel’s Central Committee of Disabled Veterans and Partisans, received the Order for Courage, First Class.

Shimon Redlich, emeritus professor at Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, also received the Order of Merit, Third Class.

It is especially noteworthy that Levin and Berenshtein represented the same civic association. Their simultaneous decoration reflected the Ukrainian state’s recognition both of work on behalf of immigrants and efforts to preserve historical memory.

The decree is also important for reconstructing Levin’s life: it documents that David Mikhailovich was already heading the All-Israel Association of Immigrants from Ukraine in November 2007.

Source: Ukrainian Presidential Decree No. 1090/2007 of November 12, 2007.

This is the earliest dated government document identified so far that describes Levin as chairman.

August 24, 2013 — Order of Prince Yaroslav the Wise, Fifth Class

The second documented state order dates to the presidency of Viktor Yanukovych.

Under Decree No. 452/2013 of August 24, 2013, David Levin was awarded the Order of Prince Yaroslav the Wise, Fifth Class.

Official text of Decree No. 452/2013.

The award’s public presentation was reported by the Association of Jewish Organizations and Communities of Ukraine.

The ceremony took place at a Ukrainian Embassy reception in Israel marking the 22nd anniversary of Ukraine’s independence, at the Dan Panorama hotel in Tel Aviv.

Ambassador Hennadii Nadolenko spoke about the importance of Israelis of Ukrainian origin to relations between the two states. The association of immigrants from Ukraine and its chairman received special recognition at the event.

Levin thanked those present for the award.

Detailed Vaad of Ukraine report, August 2013.

The press also mentioned certificates of honor from Ukraine’s Ministry of Culture, Cabinet of Ministers and Embassy, as well as a personalized watch from Ukraine’s prime minister. These accounts require further documentary clarification because the dates and reference details of some honors have not been established.

Final years: civic activity and Holocaust remembrance

Levin continued to take part in public life at an advanced age.

In materials from 2020, his name appears in connection with international discussions about aid for Jewish Holocaust refugees from the former USSR, including initiatives associated with the Claims Conference.

The Claims Conference is an organization concerned with compensation and assistance for survivors of Nazi persecution. Its programs were of practical importance to many elderly Israelis who had immigrated from the former USSR.

Parliamentary documents from the same period mention Levin not only as head of the association, but also as someone who wrote poetry and published books.

In 2023, he was still representing the organization publicly at a Babyn Yar memorial ceremony at Yad Vashem.

His final years coincided with events that gave relations between Ukraine and Israel renewed significance for immigrants from Ukraine: Russia’s war against Ukraine, new waves of forced displacement, humanitarian initiatives and questions of historical remembrance.

His individual role in each of these areas, however, has not yet been documented. Specific projects from 2022–2025 should therefore not be credited to him without supporting evidence.

March 12, 2025: the death of David Levin

On March 12, 2025, the Ukrainian Embassy in the State of Israel announced David Levin’s death.

The announcement issued that day stated:

“Today David Levin passed away.”

The embassy described him as the longtime chairman of the All-Israel Association of Immigrants from Ukraine, highlighting decades of service to immigrants, development of Ukrainian-Israeli ties and preservation of historical memory.

Ukrainian Embassy statement of March 12, 2025.

Levin was 86 years old when he died.

The cause of death, exact location, funeral date and burial place have not been established in the public documents found.

Condolences from Ukraine’s chief rabbi

On March 16, 2025, Ukraine’s chief rabbi, Moshe Reuven Asman, published a personal tribute to David Levin.

He recalled meeting Levin repeatedly while working on joint projects and civic initiatives.

Asman emphasized Levin’s many years of work on behalf of immigrants from Ukraine and his efforts to strengthen cooperation between Ukraine and Israel.

Particularly moving was his description of Levin as “the true soul of the Ukrainian community in Israel” — the very soul of that community.

These were the words of a man who knew Levin through working with him, not a formal biographical assessment.

Moshe Reuven Asman’s tribute of March 16, 2025.

The memorial institution Yad Vashem, with which Levin had worked for many years, also expressed condolences to his family. In a March 12, 2025 Hebrew-language death notice in Haaretz’s memorial archive, Yad Vashem explicitly called him chairman of the association of immigrants from Ukraine and expressed sorrow to the family. The notice did not list the names of his wife and children.

After Levin: the association and remembrance live on

On October 12, 2026, the day David Levin would have turned 88, Larisa Levkovskaya, who continued the association’s leadership after him, published a commemorative biographical text. In the official program for Yad Vashem’s September 29, 2026, ceremony, she was introduced as acting chairwoman.

In the tribute, she recalled his life, work with people, support for immigrants, cultural initiatives and the special place of family in his life.

Larisa Levkovskaya’s memorial post of October 12, 2026.

More important still, the association’s work did not end with the death of its longstanding leader.

On September 29, 2026, Yad Vashem hosted a ceremony marking the 85th anniversary of the Babyn Yar massacre. Participants included Yad Vashem chairman Dani Dayan, Natan Sharansky, representatives of the Ukrainian Embassy and Larisa Levkovskaya.

NAnews provided detailed coverage of the preparations for the ceremony and the commemorative event itself.

This continuity is especially important for understanding Levin’s legacy.

He was among those who helped make remembrance of Babyn Yar an enduring tradition in the civic life of immigrants from Ukraine in Israel.

After his death, that work continued.

The All-Israel Association of Immigrants from Ukraine today: leadership and contacts

The civic organization headed for many years by David Mikhailovich Levin continues to operate in Israel. After his death in March 2025, his colleagues carried on its work.

According to the official program of Yad Vashem’s September 29, 2026, memorial ceremony, Larisa Levkovskaya represented the association as acting chairwoman.

Who sits on the board?

Israel’s state nonprofit register, GuideStar, listed six board members of the All-Israel Association of Immigrants from Ukraine in its “בעלי תפקידים” (“Officeholders”) section as of mid-October 2026:

• Vera Kislova — ורה קיסלובה.
• Mila Fleishtman — מילה פליישטמן.
• Marina Yitsev — מרינה ייצב.
• Yehiel Fishon — יחיאל פישון.
• Maria Foxman — מריה פוקסמן.
• Nicole Larisa Levkovskaya — ניקול לריסה לבקובסקי.

Authorized to sign on behalf of the organization, according to the registry, are Marina Yitsev and Nicole Larisa Levkovskaya.

The audit committee consists of Isabella Shender (איזבלה שנדר), Alina Dushkov (אלינה דושקוב) and Nadezhda Verba (נדיזדה ורבה).

The auditing accountant is Yitzhak Rosenthal (יצחק רוזנטל).

This information is published on the basis of the most recent association report accepted by the register. The date of that report is not specified in the public list, so the board composition should not be treated as independently confirmed on any particular day in October 2026. Some surnames have been transliterated from Hebrew and may differ from the forms used in personal documents.

Source: GuideStar Israel — officeholders of association No. 580131480.

Association contact details

Hebrew name: התאחדות יוצאי אוקראינה בישראל (ע״ר).

Head: Larisa Levkovskaya — acting chairwoman, according to information from September 2026.

Nonprofit registration number: 580131480.

Registered address: 3 Yitzhak Sade Street, Rishon LeZion, Israel.

Email: 1977vovu@gmail.com.

Facebook and Messenger: All-Israel Association of Immigrants from Ukraine.

Registration and financial information: Organization profile in the Israeli Taagidim database.

The email address is published directly on the association’s Facebook page. No verified current telephone number for the central board has been found in public sources. To get in touch, people can email the association or send a Facebook message.

What David Levin left behind

David Levin’s life cannot be reduced to a single title.

He was not only an engineer, only a poet or only the head of a civic association.

His life spanned several historical eras.

He was born in the Ukrainian SSR before the Second World War. He lost his father and then his mother. He grew up in Uzbekistan, learned a profession, worked and, according to biographical accounts, held a senior position in the scientific establishment.

After the collapse of the USSR, he moved to Israel and, at an age when many people are already reviewing the results of their careers, began a major new chapter of public service.

His association united people from different Ukrainian cities, helped immigrants address social issues, supported Ukrainian culture in Israel and took part in preserving Holocaust remembrance.

His Knesset appearances show that tangible problems mattered to him: pensions, jobs, housing and the ability to live with dignity after immigration.

His books reveal another side: a need to express personal experience through poetry and nonfiction commentary.

Two Ukrainian state orders confirm that his work received recognition at the national level.

But perhaps his most lasting achievement was neither a decoration nor an official position, but the civic connections he helped build and maintain between people.

David Mikhailovich Levin (October 12, 1938 – March 12, 2025) belonged to a generation of Jews from Ukraine whose lives could not be contained within the borders of a single country.

Ukraine was his birthplace. Uzbekistan was where he grew up and established his professional career. Israel was the country in which he spent his last three decades and left a significant mark on civic life.

Lives like his help explain why the history of Jews from Ukraine is at once the history of Ukraine, Israel and the wider Jewish diaspora.

Sources and documents

Biography, family, Uzbekistan and books: Russian Literature in Israel, “David Levin” entry, p. 160; Larisa Levkovskaya’s memorial profile, October 12, 2026; WorldCat, Love Like a Bright Comet.

The association’s history and Israeli registries: Ukrinform — 1979, 1988 and the 2020 anniversary greeting; GuideStar, nonprofit No. 580131480; official registration of the 1995 name change; the organization’s financial and registration data; service for obtaining registration documents.

Additional financial and archival records: government list of budget allocations for 2006 — 40,000 ₪; Rehovot municipal support calculation, November 23, 2023; registry data for 2025 and proper-management certificates for 2026–2027.

Hebrew-language sources about Levin and the association: Ynet, Levin’s remarks after meeting Tzipi Livni, November 23, 2008; Knesset, February 12, 2008, Valery Fainer; Knesset, 2009, Levin and Fainer; Knesset, 2009, veterans and the fight against Nazism; Knesset, June 23, 2014, Bina Samkhova; Knesset, February 22, 2016, account of 35 branches; Knesset, July 24, 2017, Karmiel and Arad; Knesset, June 19, 2018, Babyn Yar project.

Civic activities: parliamentary meeting of July 1, 2008; Knesset committee on receiving immigrants, June 8, 2015; Jewish Kyiv, No. 22, December 2011; Jewish Kyiv, No. 23, January 2012; materials from the pension-rights movement.

Culture and diplomacy: Vaad of Ukraine — Embassy reception and 2013 festival; Ukrainian Embassy — Bat Yam evening.

State decorations: Ukrainian Presidential Decree No. 1090/2007; Decree No. 452/2013.

The “Book of Life” project (2006): official Amigour website — more than 50 books and collected volume of 1,000 memoirs; Hebrew-language history of Amigour mentioning 50 books and the association’s participation; National Library of Israel — publication of memories by Amigour residents.

Remembering Babyn Yar: Yad Vashem, official invitation to the September 11, 2013, ceremony; Ynet, 2021, Babyn Yar’s 80th anniversary in the Knesset and Mikhail Sidko; 2009 ceremony; UNIAN photograph, September 29, 2016; Yad Vashem, October 7, 2019; NAnews — September 2023 ceremony.

Death and remembrance: Haaretz, Yad Vashem condolences, March 12, 2025; Ukrainian Embassy announcement, March 12, 2025; tribute by Ukraine’s Chief Rabbi Moshe Asman, March 16, 2025.

NAnews context: “Jews from Ukraine”; first memorial gatherings at Babyn Yar in 1966; new Ukrainian edition of Kuznetsov’s Babyn Yar; 2026 Yad Vashem ceremony; David Horowitz — another story in the “Jews from Ukraine” series.

Editor’s note: some information on Levin’s early childhood, career in Uzbekistan and family comes from a biographical reference book and recollections. It requires further archival verification. This does not apply to his two state awards, confirmed by presidential decrees, or his parliamentary activities, for which dated documents survive.

Author: Pavel Shveiko

They meet on Friday, October 30, 2026, at CALLAS TLV, Menachem Begin Rd 37, Tel Aviv-Yafo. Doors will open at 19:00, the main program will start at 20:00, and after midnight there will be two more hours for the afterparty.

Tickets are already available at https://selector.org.il/e/Pcy-i4HGkP2

The evening will be held in Ukrainian, but the event is open to everyone. Knowing Ukrainian folklore, coming in an embroidered shirt, or understanding who mavkas are is not necessary. You can simply come to the party, listen to music, and get acquainted with another part of modern Ukrainian cultural life in Israel.

What is “Velesova Night” and who are its characters

For the Israeli reader, it is better to immediately separate two things here.

Veles is indeed an ancient Slavic deity, known from written sources for over a thousand years. And “Velesova Night” from October 31 to November 1 in its current Ukrainian form is a modern cultural tradition that became noticeable in Ukraine already in the 21st century.

Veles, or Volos, is mentioned in chronicle stories about the treaties of Rus with Byzantium in 907 and 971. He was called the “god of cattle” and was associated with livestock, household, prosperity, and material well-being. So Veles himself is not a modern character invented for autumn festivals or Halloween: his name is indeed known from the sources of the times of Kievan Rus.

But a separate annual holiday called “Velesova Night” exactly on October 31 is not recorded in Ukrainian ethnographic records of the 19th and 20th centuries. However, Ukrainian folk culture did indeed know many stories about ancestors, divination, witches, forest creatures, evil spirits, and special days when the boundary between the ordinary and the otherworldly seemed to become less clear. Historically, all these ideas did not constitute a single holiday under today’s name.

In the Ukrainian information space, the name “Velesova Night” becomes noticeable around 2017. The night from October 31 to November 1 begins to be described as a Ukrainian interpretation of Halloween, adding its own folk and literary images. In the 2020s, it is no longer just an internet topic: under the name “Velesova Night,” cultural programs, folklore meetings, festivals, and themed parties are held in Ukraine.

For example, in 2025 in Poltava, an ethnographic evening “Velesova Night: Rites of Ukrainian Halloween” took place. At the same time, the modern form of the holiday is considered more as a new reinterpretation of old folklore motifs rather than a literal restoration of one ancient rite.

Hence the characters that appear today around “Velesova Night.” For the Ukrainian audience, many of them are familiar from childhood, from school, literature, theater, or modern mass culture. For an Israeli, the words “Konotop witch” or “Carpathian mavka” require separate explanation.

Konotop witch is primarily one of the most famous images of Ukrainian literature of the 19th century. Konotop is a real city in the current Sumy region. In 1833, Ukrainian writer Hryhorii Kvitka-Osnovianenko wrote a satirical-fantastic story “Konotopska vidma”, published in 1837. At the center of the story is a witch hunt, magic, superstitions, and the witch Yavdokha Zubikha, and behind all this is quite a harsh satire on local officials, ignorance, and human stupidity.

Almost two centuries later, the “Konotop witch” has once again become part of modern Ukrainian culture. In 2023, director Ivan Uryvsky staged a play of the same name at the Ivan Franko National Theater in Kyiv. The production became one of Ukraine’s notable theatrical hits, fragments of the play spread across social networks, and the image of the Konotop witch once again found itself in mass culture. Therefore, today it is both a character from old literature and quite a modern Ukrainian cultural symbol.

Mavka is an image of much older folklore origin. In Ukrainian folk beliefs, it is a female supernatural being associated with the forest and wild nature. Especially many stories about mavkas were recorded in the Carpathians, Volyn, and Podillia in the 19th–20th centuries. Usually, a mavka was imagined as a young beautiful girl, but she belongs to the non-human world and in old stories is not always safe for the person who meets her.

The image of Mavka became especially well-known throughout Ukraine thanks to Lesya Ukrainka, who in 1911 wrote the drama-fairy tale “Lisova pisnya”. Her Mavka became one of the most recognizable characters in Ukrainian literature. In the 21st century, the image received another wave of popularity thanks to modern culture, including the Ukrainian animated film “Mavka. Lisova pisnya”, released in 2023.

Therefore, the expression “Carpathian mavka” for a Ukrainian usually evokes a fairly understandable set of associations: mountains, forest, long hair, nature, beauty, and at the same time something non-human and a little dangerous.

Witches in general occupy a large place in Ukrainian folklore. In records of the 19th–20th centuries, they were attributed the ability to influence crops, livestock, weather, people’s health, and family life. At the same time, the Ukrainian folk witch did not necessarily look like a Western European Halloween witch in a black hat with a broom. In stories, it could be a completely ordinary woman whom those around her considered capable of witchcraft.

Alongside witches in folk stories were sorcerers, healers, and “knowing people”. Some treated with herbs, others used spells, and still others were attributed the ability to see or do what was inaccessible to an ordinary person. The boundary between folk medicine, faith, superstitions, and magic in such stories was very fluid.

The Carpathians also appear in the modern “Velesova Night” not by chance. It is the Ukrainian Carpathians that are especially strongly associated in the mass imagination with mountain folklore, forest creatures, healers, charms, and numerous legends. Therefore, the mist over the Carpathians, mavkas, and witches have today become almost a ready visual language of the Ukrainian mystical theme.

But the pumpkin with a carved face already primarily relates to the modern international culture of Halloween. In Ukrainian life, the pumpkin has been known for centuries and even received its symbolic meaning: the expression “dati harbuza” means to refuse a person during matchmaking. But turning a pumpkin into a lantern with a face is not an ancient Ukrainian custom of “Velesova Night,” but an element of Halloween that in the 21st century has calmly mixed with the Ukrainian theme.

Therefore, the modern Ukrainian “Velesova Night” looks exactly like such a cultural blend. 907 and 971 years give us real written mentions of Veles; 19th–20th centuries — a huge layer of recorded Ukrainian folklore about witches, mavkas, healers, and the otherworldly; 1833 and 1837 years — the appearance of the “Konotop witch” in Ukrainian literature; 1911 year — “Lisova pisnya” by Lesya Ukrainka and the famous Mavka; approximately since 2017 the name “Velesova Night” noticeably spreads in the Ukrainian information space; and in the 2020s it turns into a recognizable modern format of cultural events and parties.

Therefore, when today Veles, Konotop witches, Carpathian mavkas, sorcerers, and pumpkins are nearby, it is not a list of characters from one ancient rite. It is a modern Ukrainian interpretation, in which the ancient name of Veles, real Ukrainian folklore, classical literature of the 19th–20th centuries, and today’s Halloween culture have merged.

What is “Velesova Night” in this case

The organizers are not trying to turn the club into an ethnographic museum and themselves quite accurately explain their idea: “modern interpretation of Ukrainian Halloween”.

In modern Ukraine, the name “Velesova Night” has become a recognizable autumn mystical format, where Ukrainian folk motifs, stories about witches, mavkas, the Carpathians, the otherworldly, and the already familiar Halloween culture are combined. At the DISCO UKRAЇNA party, they decided not just to write this theme on the poster, but to integrate it into the evening program.

That is why Marina Kadatska will appear here, representing MAK UA — “Ukrainian Art Amateur Forge in Israel”. She will tell guests about the symbols, images, and mystical world of “Velesova Night.” The organizers immediately warn: there will be no historical test. After all, people came to dance.

For the Israeli reader, it is easiest to imagine the format like this: it is a Ukrainian-themed Halloween party, only instead of the standard set of Western pop culture, the organizers take Ukrainian images and add them to the modern club scene of Tel Aviv.

Four DJs and the premiere of a new Serdyuchka

On October 30, the music will be provided by DOMINIC, LOUTIQUE, SAMSO, and ROMAN ZOTS.

After the previous party, the team conducted a survey among guests and says that the music program was compiled taking into account the feedback received. Therefore, they promise not to go exclusively in one direction: there will be modern Ukrainian music, famous songs of past years, original versions of compositions, new remixes, and international dance tracks.

Moreover, two DJs are preparing their own premieres for the evening — DOMINIC and LOUTIQUE.

LOUTIQUE will have another separate number: a new remix of “Dancing Lasha Tumbai” by Verka Serdyuchka. There is still time until the 20th anniversary of the song — Serdyuchka performed it at Eurovision in 2007 — so this is precisely about the premiere on the eve of the anniversary. The organizers promise to play the new version for the first time at DISCO UKRAЇNA.

For the project, such musical experiments are no longer news. At the previous big party “NEZALEZHNA 2026”, held in August at the same CALLAS TLV venue, LOUTIQUE prepared a separate remix of a song by Iryna Bilyk. Then DJ LUMARE from Lviv also joined the team. Our material about that meeting can be read here: “NEZALEZHNA 2026” in Tel Aviv.

Witch at the entrance, Olya Yarosh, and mystical stand-up

Acquaintance with the theme of the evening will begin literally from the door. Guests will be greeted by Vita, whom the organizers present as “the first encounter with mysticism.”

The host will once again be Olya Yarosh. She will handle contests, interactives, and the connection between different parts of the program.

And Anton Shevchenko is preparing a separate stand-up with a mystical twist for “Velesova Night.” After the performance, the program will return to the dance floor.

For NAnovosti — News of Israel | Nikk.Agency, the evolution of DISCO UKRAЇNA is also interesting here. In the spring, the project held a White Party at PHI GARDEN, and now after the August “NEZALEZHNA 2026,” it remains at the larger CALLAS venue and builds a fully themed evening with a host, stand-up, cultural part, and separate activities. We talked about the May party in the material “DISCO UKRAЇNA in Tel Aviv — Ukrainian White Party”.

1,000 shekels for the best costume

Costumes this time are not just for photos. The main prize of the contest is 1,000 ₪.

The organizers suggest recalling Konotop witches, Carpathian mavkas, sorcerers, pumpkins, or coming up with your own image. The winner will be chosen jointly by guests and the jury. Who will be on the jury will be announced closer to the party.

But no one is obliged to come in costume. The dress code is formulated quite broadly: festive, cocktail, themed, or with a Ukrainian accent.

There is only one restriction, and it is quite understandable for Israel now. The team asks to refrain from excessively bloody and violent images — considering what people are going through in Ukraine and Israel. As much mysticism as you want. The organizers do not want to see bloody horror that evening.

There will also be a Wheel of Fortune with gifts. The list of prizes is not yet disclosed — it is promised to be published closer to October 30.

How the evening will go

At 19:00 the doors will open. At this time, music will already be playing, the bar will be open, you can meet friends, order food, or have a drink before the program starts.

From 20:00 to midnight — the main part: DJ sets, new remixes, a story about “Velesova Night,” stand-up, contests, Wheel of Fortune, and dancing.

From 00:00 to 02:00 there will be an afterparty. As the organizers themselves put it: the main program will end, the party will not.

The cost of any ticket already includes one drink of choice — beer or a glass of wine. CALLAS will also have a bar with special prices, you can order food. Everything beyond the included drink is paid separately.

Entrance — only 18+.

There are several parking lots near CALLAS. More detailed information about parking and other practical details the team promises to send to guests before the event.

Tickets: from 99 shekels

A promotional price is currently in effect.

A regular promotional ticket costs 99 ₪ + service fee. The option 119 ₪ + fee includes the same conditions and an additional 20 shekels to support discounted tickets for Ukrainian refugees. A ticket with transfer costs 149 ₪ + fee. The full ticket price when purchased directly at the entrance is 199 ₪ + fee.

Tickets are sold through Selector: DISCO UKRAЇNA “Velesova Night” page.

Ukrainian refugees in Israel

The social part of DISCO UKRAЇNA is preserved in the new edition. When purchasing a ticket, you can add 20 shekels, which will be directed to funding discounted tickets for Ukrainian refugees currently in Israel due to the war.

Ukrainians who need such a ticket are offered to contact Hanna on WhatsApp at +972-55-318-0875. She represents ASSAF, an Israeli organization working with refugees and asylum seekers. This contact is intended specifically for questions about discounted tickets; for the party itself, organizers ask to write to them directly.

Such a scheme has already been used by DISCO UKRAЇNA before. For example, at the February Be My Valentine party and the May White Party, the additional 20 shekels collection also went to tickets for Ukrainians who found themselves in Israel due to the war. More about the first such event was told by NAnovosti here: “Support for Ukrainian refugees in Israel: DISCO UKRAЇNA”.

In addition, part of the evening’s income organizers promise to donate to support volunteer initiatives in Ukraine and the Ukrainian community in Israel.

Who organizes DISCO UKRAЇNA

In the event card, the organizer is listed as DISCO UKRAINA, contact email — nezalezhna.il@gmail.com. The project is associated with the team “Nezalezhna — Ukrainian Party”, which holds Ukrainian musical and public events in Israel. In previous announcements of this series, the organizer was also indicated as “Nezalezhna.”

You can follow the team’s news through Nezalezhna.il on Facebook and Instagram. At the same time, the party itself remains Ukrainian in language and content, but the invitation is addressed not only to Ukrainians: the organizers are waiting for community friends, Israelis, and generally everyone who wants to spend a Friday evening with Ukrainian music and a slightly unusual mysticism for Tel Aviv.

DISCO UKRAЇNA: “Velesova Night” will take place on October 30 at CALLAS TLV, Menachem Begin Rd 37.

Doors — at 19:00, main program — from 20:00, afterparty — until 02:00.

And you can leave the costume at home. Although with a prize of a thousand shekels, it might be worth considering.

Tickets are already available at https://selector.org.il/e/Pcy-i4HGkP2

Hair Health Center in Haifa “Abramsky”

HaHistadrut Ave 44, Haifa, 3296034

Our website – “Abramsky” – Hair Health Center in Haifa

phone for inquiries:

055-939-7729 

– PRP (PRP) – therapy in Haifa and Krayot for hair health ( טיפול פרפ )

Attention: Only a Dermatologist-Trichologist can consult on hair loss issues and prescribe treatment. He can adjust the course of procedures based on the dynamics of treatment. In individual cases, the Doctor may combine PRP procedures with mesotherapy or hormone therapy.

PRP therapy — an innovative procedure in trichology.

The essence of the method is to introduce a special preparation based on the patient’s blood plasma, enriched with platelets, into the scalp. Plasma therapy contains more than 1 million cells per 1 microliter.

PRP therapy is safe and has minimal contraindications.

Essence of the method

Plasma therapy as an injectable rejuvenating and restorative method has no analogues. Before being introduced into the skin of the problem area, the plasma obtained from the patient’s blood undergoes special preparation and enrichment with platelets. Platelets stimulate the regeneration of damaged cells, the production of stem cells, and activate metabolic processes.

Scalp plasma lifting procedure PRP increases the resource of blood vessels nourishing the follicles, improves blood circulation in the scalp, saturates hair roots with vitamins, minerals, enzymes, and hormones, activates growth, improves hair quality, and normalizes sebaceous secretion, local immunity is activated. Reviews of hair plasma lifting from patients and trichologists fully confirm the effectiveness of the method.

Indications for the procedure

Plasma therapy has a whole list of indications in the field of trichology:

• Diffuse hair thinning;
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Hair Health Center in Haifa “Abramsky”

HaHistadrut Ave 44, Haifa, 3296034

Our website – “Abramsky” – Hair Health Center in Haifa

phone for inquiries:

055-939-7729 

Contraindications

Plasma therapy is not recommended for patients with:

• pregnancy and lactation;
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Author: Lev Varshavsky

Kasparov’s main idea goes far beyond the pre-election discussion: Israel and Ukraine face interconnected threats, and the attempt to maintain political distance between these conflicts benefits the Kremlin above all.

Russia, Iran, Hamas: two wars and the common interests of adversaries

Kasparov views the wars in Ukraine and the Middle East as two fronts of a broader confrontation between authoritarian regimes and the democratic world.

In his worldview, Russia, Iran, Hamas, and Hezbollah form an interconnected system of threats. He names China as another influential participant in this confrontation, acting behind the scenes.

Kasparov pays special attention to the cooperation between Moscow and Tehran. In his assessment, Russian-Iranian military ties allow the experience of one war to be used in another. Technologies, tactics of using drones, missiles, and air defense become part of a shared military experience.

Here it is necessary to separate confirmed cooperation between Russia and Iran from Kasparov’s broader claims. His characterization of Iran as a state completely dependent on Moscow is a political assessment, not an established fact.

Nevertheless, the interconnection of threats has long ceased to be an abstraction.

NANews — Israel News | Nikk.Agency

Why Ukraine’s victory is necessary for Israel

To Svetlova’s direct question about why Israel should support Ukraine, Kasparov responds through the interests of the Jewish state itself.

He is convinced that the military and geopolitical defeat of Russia can change the Russian political system, weaken its cooperation with Iran, and in the long run, reduce pressure on Israel.

According to this logic, helping Ukraine is not charity and not a service to Kyiv. It is an investment in its own security.

Previously, NANews wrote about a meeting of Ukrainian representatives with Israeli analytical centers, where Russian aggression, the Iranian threat, and opportunities for bilateral security cooperation were discussed.

However, the weakening of Moscow itself does not guarantee the cessation of Iranian support for terrorist organizations. Such a result remains Kasparov’s forecast, not a proven consequence of a possible Ukrainian victory.

Russian propaganda and Israeli politics

One of the most acute parts of the interview is devoted to the Kremlin’s attempts to influence democratic states.

According to Kasparov, Putin does not need to achieve the victory of any ideology. It is enough for him to intensify social polarization, distrust of government institutions, and conflicts within Western societies.

Israel, the opposition figure believes, is no exception.

Kasparov suggests that the Russian propaganda system is interested in maintaining Israel’s current political course, as an uncertain position on the war against Ukraine allows Moscow to avoid additional diplomatic pressure.

He also claims that Kremlin information resources are trying to influence the Russian-speaking audience in Israel.

But here accuracy is crucial: the interview does not present specific evidence of an organized Russian operation in support of the current Israeli government in the 2026 elections. This is Kasparov’s political assessment, requiring separate verification.

Anti-Semitism as a tool of destabilization

Kasparov separately talks about anti-Semitism in Europe.

In his opinion, the Kremlin uses existing social contradictions, including anti-Israeli sentiments, to deepen the crisis between Israel and Western democracies.

He sees such tactics as part of a broader Russian policy of destabilizing Europe.

But it is not possible to automatically attribute every manifestation of anti-Semitism or every anti-Israeli action to Moscow. These phenomena have their own historical, ideological, and social reasons. Possible Russian interference needs to be established separately.

Israel must decide on a strategy

Kasparov openly advocates for political changes in Israel. He believes the country needs a more consistent foreign policy based on cooperation with democratic states and support for Ukraine.

At the same time, Israeli caution has its own reasons, including regional security and the need to consider Russia’s presence in the Middle East. These circumstances cannot simply be erased from the discussion.

But the question remains, which becomes especially relevant after Kasparov’s interview.

Can Israel effectively counter Iran while maintaining political distance from Ukraine, which is at war with one of Tehran’s key partners?

Kasparov answers negatively.

It is here that his interview turns from a commentary on the Israeli elections into a discussion about long-term national interests.

For Israel, it is not important whether it likes Garry Kasparov or shares his political views. What matters is how cooperation with Ukraine can enhance the country’s security and limit the capabilities of those who threaten its citizens.

Author: Alexander Khmelnitsky

The course is taught by Professor Anna Shternshis from the University of Toronto, one of the researchers of Soviet Jewry and Yiddish culture.

Participation is free, registration is required.

Register for Anna Shternshis’s open course

Organizers also promise a certificate to those who complete the test assignments.

And for the Israeli reader, there is one not-so-small detail. Despite the fact that the program is conducted by Ukrainian academic and Jewish institutions, the lectures will be delivered in Russian — this is explicitly stated in the official registration form. It turns out to be a course that a fairly large part of Russian-speaking Israel can join without a language barrier.

Not only the Holocaust: how Jews lived between 1917 and 1991

Soviet-Jewish history has a perception problem. For many, it breaks down into several familiar points: revolution, Holocaust, Stalin’s anti-Semitism, refuseniks, aliyah. Between these points, almost three generations of ordinary life remain — school, theater, profession, family, songs, books, childhood memories, attempts to preserve one’s culture or, conversely, to dissolve into the Soviet environment.

This is precisely the period that Shternshis’s program targets. In the course description, organizers specifically emphasize that history will be examined not only through state decisions and political campaigns but also through literature, memoirs, folklore, cinema, personal stories, and music. The question is posed quite simply: not only what the Soviet state did to the Jews, but also how the Jews themselves lived within this state.

This is already noticeable in the schedule:

• October 1 — revolution: Isaac Babel, S. An-sky, Peretz Markish, David Bergelson;
• October 8 — creation of a new Jewish culture and the ‘Kultur-Lige’;
• October 15 — ‘Jewish in form, Soviet in content’: ‘Red Haggadah’, banquet on Yom Kippur, and everyday life;
• October 27 — Jewish schools and childhood;
• October 29 — Jewish theater, Kyiv GOSET, and amateur theaters;
• November 12 — family, profession, and ordinary life;
• November 23 — Holocaust in Ukraine and Yiddish music in Transnistria;
• December 7 — Jews in evacuation in Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, and Kazakhstan;
• December 10 — late Stalinism, arrests of Yiddish writers, struggle against ‘cosmopolitanism’ and the ‘Doctors’ Plot’;
• December 17 — Jewish and non-Jewish experience in Ukraine in the 1960s–1980s: what was common and what remained different.

By the way, there was a small discrepancy in the announcements. The initial announcement states that lectures take place on Thursdays at 20:00, but the detailed registration form also schedules classes for Tuesday, October 27, and Mondays, November 23 and December 7. Therefore, before joining, it is better to focus on the specific date sent to registered listeners, rather than just remembering ‘every Thursday’.

What is the ‘Kultur-Lige’ and why Kyiv

The name ‘Kultur-Lige’ may sound like another Soviet organization to the Israeli reader. But it emerged even before the final establishment of the Soviet system — in Kyiv in early 1918, during the period of the Ukrainian Central Rada.

It was a large Jewish cultural organization primarily focused on secular Yiddish culture. In Ukraine, it created schools, kindergartens, libraries, theater studios, music circles, and trained teachers. According to the YIVO Encyclopedia, by the summer of 1918, branches of the ‘Kultur-Lige’ existed in almost a hundred Ukrainian cities and towns.

And then begins a story quite characteristic of the USSR. The new government first uses and finances part of the cultural infrastructure, later the autonomous space becomes increasingly subordinate to ideology and state control.

Therefore, the lecture on the ‘Kultur-Lige’ is not only a story about books or theater. Through it, one can see the moment when Kyiv was one of the notable centers of modern Yiddish culture in Eastern Europe, a culture that was not museum-like but lively and very urban.

This line has already appeared from another angle in NAnews. In the material about the connection between Ukrainian, Yiddish, and Hebrew, we explained why Yiddish in Ukrainian cities was not some ‘foreign language of the diaspora’, but an everyday language of a huge number of people, which lived alongside Ukrainian for centuries. ‘Ukrainian is not “almost Russian”: why its history leads to Yiddish and Hebrew’

Then this world almost disappeared

By the 1930s, Soviet policy significantly changed the conditions of Jewish life. Religious institutions were closed, independent public organizations disappeared, cultural institutions came under state control. In Odessa, for example, synagogues, religious schools, independent libraries, theaters, and publishing houses were closed; similar processes occurred in other cities of the USSR.

But this does not mean that people stopped being Jews overnight. Some continued to speak Yiddish at home, some abandoned it. Some knew Jewish holidays only from family memory, while others had religious relatives. A special Soviet-Jewish identity emerged — often secular, sometimes almost entirely Russian-speaking, but still passed down within the family.

And this story is already very close to Israel. Not abstractly: families from Kyiv, Odessa, Kharkiv, Dnipro, Zhytomyr, Chernivtsi, and hundreds of other cities of the former USSR brought it with them.

Explanation for Israeli readers: Transnistria here is not today’s Transnistria

One of the lectures is titled ‘Holocaust in Ukraine: Yiddish Music in Transnistria’. Here, without explanation, it is easy to get confused.

Transnistria during the Holocaust period is not just the current unrecognized Transnistria. From 1941 to 1944, it was the name of a large territory between the Dniester and Southern Bug, occupied and administered by Nazi Germany’s ally Romania. A significant part of it was located on the territory of modern Ukraine, and the administrative center was Odessa.

According to the US Holocaust Memorial Museum, Romanian authorities and local auxiliary formations killed approximately 280,000–380,000 Jews in this zone — through mass shootings, deportations, starvation, disease, and inhumane conditions created by the occupation regime.

Therefore, the topic of Yiddish songs there sounds almost strange — until you understand that such songs became testimonies of people who knew what was happening around them.

Anna Shternshis and the songs that were considered lost

The course is taught by Anna Shternshis — a professor at the University of Toronto, holding the J. Richard and Dorothy Shiff Chair of Jewish Studies and directing the Anne Tanenbaum Centre for Jewish Studies. Her main research topics are the history and culture of Soviet Jews, Jewish-Slavic cultural connections, Yiddish popular culture, music, and theater. Shternshis received her doctorate from Oxford University in 2001.

Among her books are Soviet and Kosher: Jewish Popular Culture in the Soviet Union, 1923–1939, dedicated to Jewish folk and popular culture in the USSR, and When Sonia Met Boris: An Oral History of Jewish Life under Stalin — a study of Jewish everyday life during the Stalinist period, based in part on oral testimonies.

But Shternshis’s connection to Ukraine is not only through a general interest in Soviet Jewry. While working with Ukrainian archival materials, she turned to a unique corpus of Yiddish songs from World War II, collected by folklorist Moisey Beregovsky. For a long time, a significant part of these texts remained unknown to the general public.

Based on the found materials, Shternshis, together with Psoy Korolenko, created the project Yiddish Glory: The Lost Songs of World War II, reviving songs written and recorded by Jews during the war. The project was nominated for a Grammy, and in 2020 Shternshis herself received a Guggenheim Fellowship.

She continues to research Yiddish music created during the Nazi occupation of Ukraine. Therefore, the separate lecture on the Holocaust and Yiddish songs in Transnistria does not appear as a random addition to the program but as one of the topics Shternshis has been professionally working on for many years.

And this changes the way of talking about the Holocaust. On November 23, the discussion will not only be about the decisions of the occupation administrations, deportations, or the number of victims. Through songs, the voice of a specific person emerges: they remember home, fear, anger, sometimes joke, record what is happening around — and thus leave a testimony that survives the war along with the text.

The ‘Doctors’ Plot’: what is meant

Another term in the program that may mean nothing to a young Israeli reader is the Soviet ‘Doctors’ Plot’.

In 1952–1953, a group of prominent Soviet doctors, a significant part of whom were Jews, was accused of conspiring to kill Soviet leaders. The campaign was accompanied by anti-Semitic propaganda, arrests, and torture. After Stalin’s death, the case was closed, charges were dropped, arrested doctors were released and rehabilitated.

For the course, this is not a logical point in itself. It is preceded by the destruction of a significant part of the independent Jewish cultural environment, the struggle against so-called ‘rootless cosmopolitanism’, and the persecution of Jewish intellectuals and writers.

And then Stalin dies — but Jewish life does not instantly reappear. That is why the tenth lecture ends the story not in 1953 but extends it to the last decades of the USSR.

Ukraine today is once again gathering its Jewish history

The course is conducted by the International Interdisciplinary Certification Program in Judaic Studies under the auspices of the A. Krymsky Institute of Oriental Studies of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine, in cooperation with the Zionist Federation of Ukraine and with the support of the Jewish Theological Seminary in New York. In September, 23 new students were admitted to the main program this year after 32 interviews.

And this is not a separate story. On September 22–23, Ukraine is also hosting an international conference of the Ukrainian Association for Jewish Studies, where researchers from Ukraine, Israel, the USA, and Hungary discuss another question — who and how over the past two centuries has formed knowledge about Jews in encyclopedias. NAnews detailed this program and the opportunity to connect online. ‘The Ukrainian Association for Jewish Studies gathers researchers’

It turns out to be two events less than two weeks apart. Some researchers are analyzing how Jewish history was recorded. Another course — how this history was lived by people.

For NAnews — News of Israel | Nikk.Agency, this is where one of the direct lines Ukraine — Israel passes. Jewish history in Ukraine today is returning not only through monuments and mourning dates but through language, family documents, songs, university research, and attempts to restore ordinary life around the catastrophe.

We recently told, for example, how in 1966 several dozen people first independently came out to commemorate the murdered Jews of Babyn Yar — at that time, the Soviet system called such gatherings ‘Jewish nationalism’, and participants had to hide the filmed footage from the authorities. ‘In 1966, the first rally in Babyn Yar took place’

Shternshis’s course allows us to see what happened on both sides of this date — and why by 1966, the simple public articulation of Jewish memory was already becoming an act.

How to join from Israel

The course starts on October 1, 2026 and consists of ten online lectures. Participation is free, but registration is mandatory; the organizers send the connection link to the participant’s email. To receive a certificate, it is necessary to complete test assignments.

The registration form specifically states that Anna Shternshis is a Canadian citizen, has never lived in Ukraine, and delivers lectures in Russian. The participant must confirm that they understand and accept this condition.

Register for Anna Shternshis’s open course

For a Russian-speaking listener from Israel, the format is therefore quite simple: Zoom, ten meetings, and a topic that for many families actually begins not in a textbook. It begins with the grandmother’s surname, the grandfather’s city of birth, a couple of incomprehensible words in Yiddish, or that very Soviet answer: ‘We didn’t really talk about it at home.’

Author: Elena Gunko, NANews

But who was this operation supposed to help? Against which political forces was it directed? No answers were given on the air.

What Nir Dvori revealed about the Russian operation

On October 25, Channel 12 reported that a private cybersecurity company, collaborating with the Shin Bet — Israel’s General Security Service — thwarted an attempt at Russian influence on the upcoming elections.

According to the channel, the operation involved the use of fake social media profiles. Through them, it was planned to spread aggressive and provocative messages, intensifying the confrontation among Israelis.

The company reportedly took measures against approximately 80 accounts linked to the Russian campaign.

However, the report did not specify how many accounts were already active, how many were being prepared for use, what publications they managed to post, and whether all profiles were automated bots.

The company that discovered the operation was not named. Sources of information about the Russian affiliation of the accounts were not publicly disclosed.

These circumstances are also noted by The Times of Israel, which published a report on October 25 citing Channel 12.

Thus, it is about an attempt to influence public opinion through social networks. There is no information about hacking election systems or interfering with vote counting.

For whom or against whom were the Russian bots campaigning?

This is the main question that remains after Channel 12’s report.

Initially, 38 party lists were registered for the elections to the 26th Knesset. Some later withdrew from participation.

Among the main participants in the campaign are Benjamin Netanyahu’s Likud, Gadi Eisenkot’s Yashar, the joint list Be-Yachad of Naftali Bennett and Yair Lapid, Avigdor Lieberman’s Yisrael Beiteinu, Yair Golan’s Democrats, Shas, United Torah Judaism, Otzma Yehudit, Religious Zionism — Zehut, Ra’am, and the Joint Arab List.

These are political forces with different programs and positions on security, economy, religion, and state governance.

But which of them were supported or attempted to be discredited by the Russian accounts?

Nir Dvori did not report this.

The channel did not provide examples of publications that could establish the political orientation of the operation. It is unknown whether the accounts called for voting for a particular party, opposed specific candidates, or merely incited conflicts.

There is also no public information on how many real voters saw these messages.

Therefore, it cannot be claimed that Russian interference in the Israeli elections was carried out in the interests of any specific party or political bloc.

What Shin Bet officially confirmed

On October 22, three days before Nir Dvori’s report, Shin Bet announced the discovery and removal of accounts used for foreign influence on the elections.

The operation involved the cyber division of the State Prosecutor’s Office and the Central Election Commission — the body responsible for organizing elections and monitoring compliance with electoral procedures.

As Channel 12 reported, Israeli services identified a network of fake profiles and false publications. According to the channel, suspicious activity had been developing for several weeks.

However, in Shin Bet’s official statement on October 22, Russia was not mentioned. The service also did not specify the exact number of accounts, their content, and political orientation.

Therefore, it cannot be automatically assumed that the profiles removed by Shin Bet and the 80 accounts from the October 25 report are the same network.

Why Russian interference is dangerous right before voting

The elections on October 27 take place against the backdrop of sharp internal disputes.

Israelis are discussing the high cost of living, housing and food prices, the authorities’ responsibility for the Hamas attack on October 7, 2023, the creation of a state commission to investigate these events, the conscription of ultra-Orthodox yeshiva students into military service, and the safety of citizens, including children, in schools and on the streets.

There are already strong disagreements around such issues. For a foreign influence operation, it is enough to artificially intensify the confrontation using fake profiles and coordinated messages.

At the same time, sharp criticism of the government, disputes with the opposition, or emotional comments are not in themselves evidence of foreign interference.

On October 22, the Israeli Institute for National Security Studies (INSS), operating at Tel Aviv University, published a study on foreign activity in social networks before the elections.

In particular, researchers examined the Russian operation Doppelgänger — a campaign using fake news sites and accounts to spread prepared informational materials.

According to INSS, in October 2026, this Russian network operated in Israel’s information space simultaneously with campaigns related to elections in the USA and France.

The discovered materials touched on Israel-US relations, security threats, economic problems, and emigration.

At the same time, researchers did not find agitation for specific Israeli parties or candidates in the studied Russian publications.

INSS also reported that by October 19, verified accounts spreading these materials were blocked. However, data allowing the identification of the studied network with the 80 accounts from Nir Dvori’s report was not presented.

Warning about Russia was sounded back in August

NANews — News of Israel | Nikk.Agency

Back on August 3, 2026, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky publicly warned that Russia might use upcoming elections in partner countries, specifically mentioning Israel.

At that time, he spoke about possible hybrid operations, financial influence, and attempts at political destabilization.

NANews thoroughly analyzed this warning and possible ways of Russian interference in Israeli elections.

Now, a day before the voting, information has emerged about a specific thwarted operation.

However, Channel 12’s report does not confirm that Russian accounts financed candidates, collaborated with Israeli parties, or received assignments from local politicians.

What remains unknown a day before the elections

On October 27, Israelis will elect 120 Knesset deputies. To form a government, support from at least 61 deputies is usually required.

On the eve of the voting, four significant gaps remain in the report on the Russian operation: the content of the publications, their political orientation, audience reach, and the organizers of the specific network are not disclosed.

Based on the published data, it is impossible to determine whether Russia sought to ensure support for a particular party, weaken its opponents, or primarily increase distrust among voters.

It is also not proven that the detected attempt at interference changed anyone’s political preferences.

Russian interference in the Israeli elections became the subject of a national television report two days before the voting. However, voters were not told for whom or against whom the detected accounts acted.

This is a fundamental question for which there is currently no public answer.

This material directly emphasizes the role of Israeli technologies and the contribution of the Israeli company Plasan Sasa.

“Fighters of the 4th SSO Ranger Regiment demonstrated their combat companion — the MaxxPro armored vehicle, which has undergone an upgrade and received additional protection against FPV drones.

The regiment notes that it is not in vain that MaxxPro is the result of cooperation between American and Israeli defense companies — the vehicle combines advanced technologies and many years of combat experience in hot spots around the world.

“Defend your loved ones with modern weapons together with the 4th SSO Ranger Regiment,” the unit urged. – Together we destroy the enemy, defending every centimeter of Ukrainian land.”

We analyze how and why this armor really saves the lives of Ukrainian defenders.

What is MaxxPro: not just an “American vehicle”

MaxxPro is an MRAP (Mine Resistant Ambush Protected) class armored vehicle. The main task is to protect the crew and landing force from mines, IEDs, shelling and modern drones.

Design: chassis of the American truck Navistar International, armored hull, V-shaped bottom to dissipate the energy of the explosion, capacity up to 7 soldiers.

MaxxPro is able to move over rough terrain, evacuate the wounded, deliver people to dangerous areas and take them back, even if an explosive device has worked.

Who and how produces MaxxPro

The development of MaxxPro was carried out by the American company Navistar Defense — the military division of the large automotive concern Navistar International, Illinois, USA.

In cooperation with Navistar, key protection components and the armored capsule itself were designed and supplied by the Israeli Plasan Sasa (see below).

Production is organized in the USA, final assembly was carried out at American factories. Armor modules come from Israel — serially, on an industrial scale, according to US Army standards.

MaxxPro is not a one-off product, but a mass-produced armored vehicle. Before the war in Ukraine, more than 9,000 such vehicles were produced for the US Army and its allies.

Plasan Sasa: what is this company and what is it known for

Plasan Sasa is a leading Israeli manufacturer of protective solutions for military equipment. It is based in Kibbutz Sasa, in northern Israel, and has been operating since 1985.

Plasan specializes in composite armor, multilayer armor packages, mine protection, and custom modules for different types of equipment.

Plasan’s clients are the Israeli Ministry of Defense, the USA, the French army, the UK and many others.

Plasan’s contribution to MaxxPro: the design and production of all key armor, including the unique V-shaped bottom, protection panels against mines, shelling, artillery, and modern drones.

How MaxxPro came to Ukraine

In 2022–2023, the United States supplied several batches of MaxxPro to Ukraine:

• The first batch — about 40 units in the summer of 2022.
• In the fall of 2022 — another approximately 200 vehicles from US military reserves.
• Additional supplies from Albania (another 22 vehicles, also with Israeli armor).

As of 2025, up to 440 MaxxPro are in operation on the Ukrainian front. Some vehicles are damaged or destroyed, some are upgraded by Ukrainian engineers.

How MaxxPro is different on the battlefield

• MaxxPro really withstands detonations on mines and IEDs, unlike outdated equipment.
• Israeli Plasan armor protects the crew from modern FPV drones, which have become especially numerous at the front.
• The vehicle is suitable for quick evacuation, breakthrough to positions, rescuing the wounded, escorting columns.

Ukrainian fighters actively upgrade MaxxPro: install additional screens, nets against drones, strengthen the armor — this experience is noted in the ArmyInform publication.

Why the contribution of Plasan Sasa is key

Without Israeli engineering solutions, MaxxPro would not have been so effective.

• Composite armor is a product of Plasan, its know-how.
• The V-shaped bottom is also an Israeli development, used since the 1990s in Israel and exported to the USA.
• The reliability and standards of Plasan armor are recognized worldwide and have become the basis for mass American MRAPs.

MaxxPro is not just an American armored vehicle, but a product of cooperation between two defense schools. The Israeli company Plasan Sasa has brought to it the engineering solutions that today save the lives of Ukrainians on the front line.

The supply of MaxxPro is an example of real, not declarative, international support.

It is used to pay for advertising on Facebook, Instagram, and Google, subscriptions to work services, hosting, domains, online stores, apps, trips, delivery, international platforms, and dozens of small regular payments.

As long as everything works, it’s convenient. But as soon as the advertising account charges more than expected, a subscription is automatically renewed, a foreign service rejects a payment, or the card needs to be reissued, it becomes clear: keeping all payments on one main card is not always wise.

Against this backdrop, more and more users are looking towards separate virtual cards. One of the services actively discussed in this topic is RedotPay.

It is often called a crypto card, but for the average user, cryptocurrency is not the only important thing.

RedotPay can be interesting as a separate payment tool: for online payments, advertising accounts, international services, mobile wallets, limits, as well as working with USDT, USDC, BTC, ETH, and other supported digital assets.

Officially, RedotPay describes itself as a payment app and stablecoin-based card that connects digital assets with everyday payments, and the service’s help center states that to get a card, you need to download the app, register, pass identity verification, add crypto assets via on-chain deposit or buy crypto, and then apply for a virtual or physical card.

What is RedotPay in simple terms

RedotPay is not an ordinary bank card from an Israeli bank. It is a separate payment service with a virtual and, depending on conditions, physical card.

It can be considered in several scenarios.

1. First scenario — RedotPay as a virtual card for online payments: advertising, subscriptions, stores, international services, work tools.
2. Second scenario — RedotPay as a card for payment via phone, it is added to Google Wallet or Apple Wallet.
3. Third scenario — RedotPay as a crypto wallet and payment app, where the user can work with supported digital assets, top up the balance, transfer funds, buy crypto assets, and use them for payments.

In official descriptions, RedotPay mentions virtual and physical cards, payment with BTC, ETH, USDT, USDC, and other assets, mobile payments, the ability to pay online and in stores, as well as using the card with a large number of merchants worldwide.

But an important point: RedotPay should not be perceived as a “card without rules.” It is a financial payment tool with its limits, fees, identity verification, top-up rules, country restrictions, and possible questions about the origin of funds.

Why a separate virtual card is needed

The main benefit of a separate virtual card is control.

When the main bank card is linked to all sites and services, the user effectively opens access to their main payment tool to dozens of different platforms. This is not always dangerous, but often inconvenient.

For example, a small business owner launches advertising on Facebook and Google.

At the same time, he pays for domains, hosting, CRM, newsletters, design services, AI tools, Canva, Adobe, subscriptions, marketplaces, and apps. After a few months, it becomes difficult to understand where the business expenses are, where the personal payments are, where the advertising is, and where the automatic renewal of an old subscription is.

A separate virtual card RedotPay allows you to separate payments. One card can be used only for advertising. Another — for subscriptions. A third — for travel or online purchases. Even if something goes wrong, the main bank card will not be linked to every service in a row.

For users in Israel, this is especially relevant because many work with international platforms, pay for services abroad, run advertising accounts in different languages, and use services that do not always work perfectly with local cards.

Payment for advertising on Facebook, Instagram, and Google

One of the main pains of business is advertising payments.

Facebook Ads, Instagram Ads, and Google Ads charge money regularly. Sometimes the charge occurs after accumulating a certain amount, sometimes on a schedule, sometimes after changing limits in the advertising account. If the main card is linked to advertising, the advertising budget mixes with personal and other business expenses.

A separate RedotPay card can help bring order. It can be used only for advertising, topped up with the necessary amount, and control spending on the project.

RedotPay in the help center separately mentions that after activating the card, information is synchronized with platforms like PayPal, Google Pay, and Facebook, but this does not mean that every payment in every advertising account will always go through without rejections. Advertising platforms, banks, payment networks, and the service itself may have their own payment verification rules.

Therefore, the correct approach is this: first test small amounts, check how the card goes through in the desired advertising account, and only then use it for regular budgets.

Limits on one payment and per day

Another strong point of a separate card is the ability to limit expenses.

If the service allows setting a limit on a one-time payment and a daily limit, it is convenient for advertising, subscriptions, online purchases, and team expenses. The user can pre-limit the amount the card can spend at one time or per day.

This is important when the card is linked to an advertising account. For example, if you want to spend no more than a certain amount on an ad test, the limit helps reduce the risk of unexpected charges.

This is also useful for subscriptions. An old service will not be able to charge more than allowed by the limit. And if the card is used only for a specific project, expenses are easier to control.

In the help center RedotPay there are separate materials on card limits and fees, as well as a section on card usage, where among the questions is the setting of transaction limits. Before active use, you need to check the current limits in your account because conditions may differ by card type, country, verification level, and service rules.

Google Wallet and Apple Wallet: card in the phone

Many users no longer need plastic. They pay by phone: in stores, cafes, transport, apps, and services.

Therefore, an important question: can a virtual card be added to a mobile wallet?

RedotPay has separate instructions for linking a virtual card to Google Pay, as well as a help center section on digital wallets, where there are materials on Google Pay and Apple Pay. On the RedotPay website, there is also a separate page about RedotPay Card on Apple Pay.

For the reader, this means a simple thing: if the function is available for their card, country, device, and account, the virtual card can become a regular payment tool in the phone. For Israel – available.

But here you cannot promise too much. Before use, you need to check whether adding the card is supported specifically for you: in Israel (it can), on your device, with your account, with your card version, and in your mobile wallet.

If the card is added to Google Wallet or Apple Wallet, it is convenient for regular purchases. If not, it can still be considered as a card for online payments, advertising, subscriptions, and international services.

Crypto wallet inside RedotPay: not just a card

RedotPay is interesting not only as a virtual card. Inside the service, there is the logic of a wallet and working with digital assets.

The official app download page RedotPay lists among the possibilities Personal: Card, Send to bank & e-wallet, Send to RedotPay user, Multi-Currency Wallet, Credit, Earn, Swap, and P2P Marketplace. This shows that the service covers not one scenario, but several: card, wallet, transfers, exchange, and working with different payment functions.

For the user, this can be convenient if they already work with USDT or other assets. For example, they can top up the balance, use the supported asset to pay with the card, transfer funds within available functions, or buy crypto assets through the app.

But the more functions, the more responsibility. You need to understand fees, networks, limits, transfer rules, withdrawal conditions, and identity verification requirements.

USDT, USDC, BTC, ETH, and other assets

RedotPay in app descriptions indicates support for payments with BTC, ETH, USDT, USDC, and other assets. But the current list is always better to check inside the app because supported assets, networks, and conditions may change.

For most users, the most understandable scenario is USDT or USDC because these are stablecoins. But even here there is a risk of error: USDT can exist in different networks, and it needs to be transferred only to the correct address in the correct network.

Crypto top-up: where mistakes are most often made

In the RedotPay help center, a standard way to top up with cryptocurrency is described: open the app, go to Home > Deposit, select the currency, for example, USDT, and then choose the appropriate network for the selected currency.

The most dangerous mistake is thinking that “USDT is USDT everywhere.”

For the user, this can end in a problem. If you choose the wrong network or send the wrong asset, the deposit may not arrive. Therefore, before transferring a large amount, it is better to make a test transfer of a small amount and make sure that the address, network, and asset are chosen correctly.

This is especially important for people who have only used a regular bank card before and are not used to crypto wallets. In a bank, you can sometimes cancel or dispute a transaction. In crypto transfers, a network or address error can be much more complicated.

Top-up with a regular bank or credit card

For users from Israel, an important question sounds like this: can RedotPay be topped up not only by transferring cryptocurrency from an external wallet but through a regular bank or credit card?

In the RedotPay help center, it is stated that the user can buy supported cryptocurrencies in the app using a credit/debit card, as well as other available payment methods.

But for the Israeli user, this needs to be checked practically.

One card may pass and another may not. The bank may decline the transaction. The payment provider may charge a fee. There may be purchase limits, country restrictions, KYC requirements, or additional checks.

Therefore, the correct wording is this: RedotPay indicates the possibility of purchasing supported crypto assets with a credit/debit card, but before use, you need to check whether your specific Israeli bank or credit card passes, what fees apply, and whether there are any restrictions from the bank or service.

Transfers between wallets and users

Another scenario is transfers.

If the service allows sending funds to other RedotPay users, working with a multi-currency wallet, transfers to bank & e-wallet, or other functions, this can be convenient for those who often make international payments or separate business and personal funds.

But here again, it is important not to promise too much. Each function may have separate conditions: country, currency, fee, speed, limit, KYC, availability for a specific user.

Therefore, in the article, it is better to write not “everything is possible,” but “the app declares different functions for the card, wallet, transfers, and fund management; before using a specific operation, you need to check its availability and conditions.”

This approach is safer and more honest.

How RedotPay differs from a regular bank card

A regular bank card is linked to a bank account. RedotPay is a separate payment service.

There are advantages in this.

You can avoid linking the main bank card to all sites.

You can use a separate card for advertising.

You can separate business expenses from personal ones.

You can set limits.

You can use a virtual card for subscriptions and international services.

You can add the card to a mobile wallet if the function is available.

You can work with supported digital assets.

But there are also limitations.

It is not a bank in the usual sense.

There are service rules.

There are fees.

There is KYC.

There are limits.

There is a risk of payment rejections.

There is a risk of errors in crypto transfers.

There are tax and banking issues if significant amounts and digital assets are involved.

That is why RedotPay is better considered not as a replacement for an Israeli bank, but as an additional payment tool for specific tasks.

Who RedotPay can be useful for

RedotPay can be of interest to entrepreneurs, marketers, website owners, freelancers, digital specialists, and anyone who regularly pays for international services.

For example, if you launch advertising on Facebook, Instagram, or Google, a separate card helps separate the advertising budget from personal expenses.

If you pay for hosting, domains, SEO services, AI tools, CRM, newsletters, design platforms, and subscriptions, a virtual card helps avoid linking the main bank card to everything.

If you travel frequently or shop in foreign online stores, a separate card can be a convenient backup payment tool.

If you already have USDT, USDC, or other supported assets, RedotPay can be interesting as a link between digital assets and everyday payments.

If it is important for you to pay by phone, you should check the support of Google Wallet and Apple Wallet for your card and country.

Who should not rush

RedotPay should not be used on emotions.

Do not rush if you do not understand the difference between a bank, a card, a crypto wallet, an exchange, and a payment service.

Do not rush if you do not know what a transfer network is.

Do not rush if you think that USDT in any network can be sent to any USDT address.

Do not rush if you are looking for an “anonymous card,” “bank bypass,” or “payments without questions.”

Do not deposit large amounts until you have checked the fees, limits, support, withdrawal rules, and card operation on small payments.

And especially do not use such services for dubious operations. Any normal payment service operates with rules, checks, and restrictions.

What to check before registration

Before registering with RedotPay, a user from Israel should go through a small checklist.

Is the service available for your country and your document.

What documents are needed for identity verification.

What fees are there for issuing and using the card.

What limits are there for one payment and per day.

Can you set the necessary limits manually.

Can the card be added to Google Wallet.

Can the card be added to Apple Wallet.

Does the card work with Facebook Ads, Instagram Ads, and Google Ads.

Is the card suitable for your subscriptions and online services.

Can you buy supported crypto assets with your bank or credit card.

What fees does the payment provider charge when purchasing with a card.

What crypto assets are supported.

What networks are available for USDT or other assets.

Can funds be transferred to other users.

Can the balance be withdrawn.

How does support work.

What to do in case of a disputed charge.

What to do if the deposit did not arrive.

What are the terms of the referral program.

This is not bureaucracy, but normal financial hygiene. The sooner the user checks these questions, the fewer surprises there will be later.

RedotPay referral program: how to speak honestly

RedotPay has a referral program. A user can invite another person via a link or code and receive a reward if the invitee fulfills the service conditions.

For media, it is important to present this transparently. There is no need to disguise the referral link as a “neutral recommendation.” The reader should understand that the author or editorial team may receive a reward.

A normal formulation looks like this:

You can register and independently study the terms of RedotPay via the link:

https://url.hk/i/en/0h7rn

The material contains a referral link. If you register through it and fulfill the conditions of RedotPay, the author or editorial team may receive a reward. This is not financial, investment, tax, or legal advice.

Main risks to remember

The first risk is fees. The card, purchasing crypto assets, exchange, withdrawal, payments, or service may have different fees. They need to be checked before the operation, not after.

The second risk is limits. If a payment does not go through, the reason may not be the store, but the card limit, service limit, account settings, or payment network rules.

The third risk is KYC. RedotPay requires identity verification to obtain a card, and this is a normal part of the operation of such services. In the help center, obtaining a card is directly linked to identity verification.

The fourth risk is errors in crypto transfers. The wrong network, wrong asset, or wrong address can create a serious problem.

The fifth risk is payment rejections. Not every service is obliged to accept a specific card. Advertising accounts, subscriptions, stores, and payment systems may have their own rules.

The sixth risk is questions from the bank or tax specialist. If it concerns digital assets and significant amounts, it is important to keep a history of operations, purchase confirmations, transfers, statements, and documents about the origin of funds.

How to start more safely

The most sensible way is not to start with a large amount.

First, you need to download the app, study the terms, register, and check which functions are available specifically to you.

Then you can issue a virtual card, look at fees, limits, and security settings.

After that, it is worth making a small test payment: for example, in an online service or where you actually plan to use the card.

If you want to use the card for advertising, first test it on a small advertising budget.

If you want to top up with cryptocurrency, first make a test transfer of a small amount.

If you want to buy crypto with a regular bank or credit card, first check if your Israeli card goes through and what the final fee is.

If you want to pay by phone, check adding it to Google Wallet or Apple Wallet.

This approach does not guarantee the absence of problems, but it significantly reduces the risk of unpleasant surprises.

Frequently asked questions

Is RedotPay a bank card?

No, it is not a regular bank card from an Israeli bank. It is a separate payment service with a virtual and, depending on the conditions, a physical card.

Can RedotPay be used in Israel?

Before registration, you need to check the availability of the service, KYC, and functions specifically for users from Israel. Conditions may depend on the country, document, account, and internal service rules.

Can you pay for advertising on Facebook, Instagram, and Google?

The card can be considered for advertising payments, but each advertising account needs to be tested separately. Payment may depend on the platform’s rules, card, limits, and verification.

Can you set a limit for one payment and per day?

RedotPay has reference materials on limits and card usage. Before use, you need to check what limits are available specifically in your account and whether they can be adjusted to your tasks.

Can the card be added to Google Wallet or Apple Wallet?

RedotPay has instructions for Google Pay and Apple Pay, but availability needs to be checked for your country, device, account, and specific card.

Can you pay in regular stores?

If the card is added to a mobile wallet and supported by a specific terminal, it can be used for contactless payment. But before that, you need to check the availability of the function and test the payment.

What crypto assets does RedotPay support?

The official app descriptions list BTC, ETH, USDT, USDC, and other assets. It is better to check the current list in the app.

Can RedotPay be topped up via USDT?

The RedotPay help center describes topping up via Deposit with a currency choice, such as USDT, and the corresponding network. The main thing is to choose the right network and not send a large amount without testing.

Can RedotPay be topped up with a regular bank or credit card?

RedotPay states that supported cryptocurrencies can be purchased in the app using a credit/debit card and other available payment methods. But a user from Israel needs to check if their specific card goes through, what fees apply, and if there are any bank restrictions.

Is this financial advice?

No. Such material should be an informational overview. The decision to register, top up, purchase digital assets, or use the card is made by the user independently.

Conclusion

RedotPay may be of interest to users in Israel not only as a crypto service but also as a separate virtual card for online payments, advertising, subscriptions, international services, and phone payments.

Its practical value lies in separating expenses and control. The main bank card does not need to be linked to all sites. A separate payment tool can be used for advertising. Limits can be set for subscriptions. A separate card can be kept for online purchases. A wallet, top-up, and supported payment functions can be used for digital assets.

But RedotPay should not be perceived as a “simple card without questions.” It is a service with KYC, fees, limits, rules, supported countries, networks, payment conditions, and possible risks.

Before registration, it is worth calmly checking the conditions, testing a small amount, understanding the limits, understanding the top-up rules, ensuring the availability of Google Wallet or Apple Wallet, and not storing large amounts without understanding all the conditions.

You can register and independently study the terms of RedotPay via the link:

https://url.hk/i/en/0h7rn

The material contains a referral link. If you register through it and fulfill the conditions of RedotPay, the author or editorial team may receive a reward. This is not financial, investment, tax, or legal advice.

Author: Anton Pshedynsky

However, this is not a British state order: the award was established by literary and public organizations. There is no reliable published history of its awarding yet.

Two Israeli writers — two different biographies

Valentyna Chaikovska was born in Lutsk, a city in northwestern Ukraine, the administrative center of the Volyn region. She graduated from the Lviv Polytechnic Institute and worked as an engineer and teacher.

In 1998, she repatriated to Israel. In Israel, repatriation refers to the relocation of Jews and their family members under the Law of Return.

In Rishon LeZion, she continued her literary work: from 2008 to 2016, she led the “Rishon” association, which held meetings and literary evenings.

Her poetry and prose have been published in Israel and beyond. In 2024, the German publishing house Stella-Verlag released her collection of stories “Love Her” with a volume of 197 pages.

Rimma Ulchina was born in Moscow and moved with her family to Israel in 1990. She is connected with the literary life of Ashdod, writing prose and journalism.

Among her books are “Mystical Novel”, “Berenice, or Leap in Time”, and “Message from Heaven, or Unreal Detective”.

In “Berenice”, the story of a modern heroine intertwines with the fate of Princess Berenice, a representative of the Herodian dynasty who lived in the 1st century in ancient Judea, on the territory of modern Israel.

In 2011, in Ashdod, Ulchina received a special “Golden Pen” award for a series of journalistic interviews “Vis-a-vis”.

It is important not to confuse their biographies: Chaikovska is a native of Ukraine, Ulchina is a native of Moscow. Both represent Israel in the list of current laureates.

Ukrainian laureates and books about the war

Serhiy Dziuba is a Chernihiv journalist, poet, prose writer, and head of the International Literary and Artistic Academy of Ukraine. He is a co-author of the documentary series “Chernihiv in Flames” about the resistance to the Russian invasion.

Chernihiv is a regional center in northern Ukraine that the Russian army attempted to capture in the spring of 2022.

The first volume was released in 2022. The fifth, “Outpost: People Who Hold Ukraine”, was published in the summer of 2026. According to the catalog of the Chernihiv Regional Library, it contains 1035 pages of testimonies from military personnel, volunteers, and residents of the region. The presentation took place on September 18 in Chernihiv.

Yuriy Rabotin is a journalist and writer from Odesa, an honored journalist of Ukraine. In August 2026, he turned 70 years old. He has worked in journalism for over half a century; since 1996, he has headed the Odesa regional organization of the National Union of Journalists of Ukraine.

His biography is unusual: in his youth, he worked at a shipbuilding plant, graduated from a maritime school, sailed on the passenger ship “Maxim Gorky”, and then became a newspaper correspondent.

Oleh Dryamin is a poet, prose writer, and artist associated with Odesa. He was born in 1956 in Sarapul, has been publishing poetry since 1974, and has been a member of the National Union of Writers of Ukraine since 1997.

Among his collections are “Lilac Grove”, “Colored Mirrors”, “Springs and Strings”. He is also a laureate of the Konstantin Paustovsky Literary Prize in 2013. In October 2026, the Odesa City Library named after Franko dedicated a video material to him for his 70th birthday.

Tetyana Muntyan is a Ukrainian poetess participating in international literary projects. Her poem about the early days of the Russian invasion was published in the Ukrainian collection “Poems about the War”.

Muntyan’s name is also among the participants of the international anti-war literary anthology. In March 2026, the organizers of another literary competition announced her as the laureate of the Antoine de Saint-Exupéry Prize. There is still little detailed independent biographical information about her.

NANews — News of Israel | Nikk.Agency

What is known about the Order of Peace and its history

The initiators of the award in the organizers’ message are named as the Academy of Literature, Arts and Communications, the World Association G.L.O.R.I.A. from Frankfurt am Main, and the representation of the Victorian Book Club in Ukraine.

The order is declared as an encouragement for contributions to peace, humanism, preservation of cultural values, and support of creative people.

But a documented history of the award — the year of establishment, the list of past laureates, an open regulation on the competition, and the composition of the jury — could not be found.

Exact places and dates of ceremonies have not been published, although the organizers report awards in five countries. The word “Victorian” does not prove a connection with the era of Queen Victoria or the British state award system.

Elena Ananyeva heads G.L.O.R.I.A., named among the founders, and is simultaneously listed among the laureates from Germany. This does not indicate violations, but the selection process for awardees remains unclear.

The list includes nine people from four countries: besides Ukrainians and Israelis, Elena Ananyeva from Germany, Joanne Bouchard, and Martin Godreau from Canada.

The fifth country — the United Kingdom — is mentioned only among the places of ceremonies.

Reports from SKNews and the National Union of Writers of Ukraine are based on a single text from the academy’s press service, not on independent award protocols.

Why this story concerns Israel

Israeli literature has long had authors with biographies that began in Ukraine.

For example, Haim Hazaz, a native of Ukrainian Sidorovychi, became the first laureate of the Israel State Prize for Literature. His story was told separately by NANews.

Comparing this state award with the current public order would be incorrect.

However, the books of the two Israeli writers and the documentary work of the authors from Chernihiv deserve attention regardless of the status of the award. It is their content and accessibility to readers that should be evaluated first and foremost.

On July 9, 2025, the second episode of the “Balachky” podcast was released on the UDM Israel channel, in which Hanna Andriienko, owner of the “SHO?” restaurant, spoke about her journey from economist to the hostess of one of the most heartfelt Ukrainian establishments in Tel Aviv.

Below we will reveal the main topics of the conversation and recommend watching the full video to hear all the details firsthand:

Main Topics of the Conversation

• The story of turning a karaoke club into the “SHO?” restaurant
• Adapting “SHO?” to wartime restrictions and switching to takeout and delivery
• Cultural mission: gastronomic evenings, “Territory Show” and “Odessa Courtyard”
• The role of “SHO?” in the life of the Ukrainian community in Israel: support, gatherings, and traditions
• Challenges and achievements of Ukrainians in Tel Aviv: how the community unites and develops

The “SHO?” Restaurant – A Home for the Ukrainian Soul in Israel

• Origin story: a sudden call from the former owner of a karaoke club and Hanna’s bold decision to create a “place of strength.”
• Atmosphere and menu: interior with Ukrainian rushnyky, family recipes for borscht, varenyky, deruny, and six types of signature nalivky.
• Supporting guests: the switch to takeout and delivery during the crisis when it was important to keep warmth in the community.

Subscribe to the “SHO?” Restaurant on Facebook: facebook.com/shoukrainianfood

3 Karlibach Street, Tel Aviv, Israel

The Ukrainian Community in Israel: Challenges and Achievements

Community Challenges

Emotional burnout after intense months, lack of coordination among initiatives, adaptation of new arrivals, and the need to preserve traditions.

Main Achievements

Regular “Zdybanka” gatherings with hundreds of participants, cultural projects “Territory Show” and “Odessa Courtyard,” volunteer campaigns, and the growth of the UDM Israel channel, confirming keen interest in the topic.

UDM Israel and the “Balachky” Podcast

UDM Israel https://www.youtube.com/@udmIsrael is the first Ukrainian-language channel from Israel where activists and entrepreneurs share stories of resilience and support in the “Balachky” format.

The high production quality and live format make this project a true bridge between cultures.

On the NAnews — Israel News website, we continue to tell stories of resilience and mutual aid. The stories of “SHO?” and UDM Israel inspire and show: together we are stronger.

Leo Motzkin (Aryeh Leib) was born in 1867 in Brovary, Kyiv province of the Russian Empire. In this small town, near Kyiv, he received a traditional Jewish education. In the late 19th century, Brovary had a large Jewish community.

Jewish Community of Brovary: History and Tragic Events

Brovary, a small town near Kyiv, has deep historical roots and significant Jewish heritage. Before World War II, it had one of the largest Jewish communities in the region. Jews began settling in Brovary in the second half of the 19th century, gradually migrating from the west after the partition of Poland. According to 1891 data, Jews made up 23.3% of the town’s population (888 people). Most were engaged in trade and crafts, actively participating in the town’s life. Brovary had a synagogue, Jewish schools, and public organizations.

The period from 1917 to 1921 was tragic for the Jewish community. During the revolution and civil war, Jews were subjected to brutal pogroms organized by various military formations: Denikin’s troops, Skoropadsky’s haidamaks, the Red Army. Many perished, and some residents left the town, emigrating to Kyiv or other safer places.

The Jewish population gradually decreased. If in 1923 there were 646 Jews living in Brovary, by 1939 their number had decreased to 458 people. World War II played a tragic role in the community’s history. From 1941 to 1943, almost all the town’s Jews perished on the fronts or were killed during the Nazi occupation. As a result of these events, the Jewish community of Brovary practically disappeared.

In the post-war years, a small part of the Jews returned to the town. In 1989, about 360 Jews lived there, but by 1999 only 110 people remained. The main reasons for the decrease were emigration to Israel and other countries, as well as the lack of conditions for community development.

Today, there are almost no direct traces left of the once numerous Jewish community in Brovary. However, its history lives on in the memory of descendants and those interested in the heritage of the Jewish people. Preserving this memory is important for future generations so that the rich culture and traditions of Brovary’s Jews are not forgotten.

To Berlin for Knowledge: A New Stage of Life

After completing his primary education, Leo Motzkin went to Berlin, where he studied mathematics and philosophy. It was in Berlin that his active public activity began. He became one of the founders of a scientific society that united students supporting the Hovevei Zion (Lovers of Zion) movement.

With the emergence of Theodor Herzl and the beginning of the Zionist movement, Motzkin became an active participant. He was a delegate to the First Zionist Congress in 1897 and advocated for a clear formulation of the movement’s goal — the creation of a Jewish state in Eretz-Israel.

First Trip to Eretz-Israel

On behalf of Theodor Herzl, Motzkin went to Eretz-Israel to assess the state of Jewish settlements. In his report, he criticized the settlement methods used by Baron Rothschild and the Hovevei Zion movement and insisted on the need for political negotiations with the Ottoman Empire.

This trip became a turning point in his activities. He realized that without political support, the creation of a Jewish state would be extremely difficult.

Important Steps on the International Stage

During World War I, Leo Motzkin headed the Copenhagen branch of the Zionist Organization. After the war, he became one of the founders of the Committee of Jewish Delegations at the Paris Peace Conference, where he defended the interests of world Jewry.

With the rise of the Nazis to power in Germany, he was the first to raise the issue of discrimination against German Jews at the League of Nations level. When this issue was removed from the agenda, Motzkin refused to cooperate with the organization but continued to provide political and financial support to the Jewish population of Germany.

Table: Key Stages of Leo Motzkin’s Life

Memory of Leo Motzkin

Leo Motzkin died in 1933 in Paris. His remains were reburied on the Mount of Olives in Jerusalem in 1934. In memory of the outstanding figure, the Israeli city of Kiryat Motzkin was founded in 1934, named in his honor.

In 1933, it was decided in Haifa to create a new residential area for middle-class families. It was to be located outside the city but close enough for residents to commute to work daily. A plot of land in the Zevulun Valley was chosen for this purpose.

The new area was named after Aryeh Leo Motzkin — a well-known Jewish public figure and one of the founders of the World Zionist Congress. Thus, Kiryat Motzkin was founded in 1934 by Polish Jews. The first residents of the area were merchants and independent craftsmen.

The territory where the new settlement was located turned out to be sandy and swampy. The lands were undeveloped and dangerous due to the risk of malaria. Settlers were offered 400 plots of land on installment. The first residents had to work hard to turn the undeveloped area into a comfortable place to live. Thanks to their efforts, the area earned the nickname “Green Island”.

By 1940, the population of Kiryat Motzkin had already reached 2,000 people, and on June 11, 1940, a local council was established. Over the years, the area continued to develop. In 1976, when the population exceeded 25,000 people, Kiryat Motzkin officially received city status.

Kiryat Motzkin became a symbol of the memory of a man who dedicated his life to the struggle for Jewish equality, the promotion of Hebrew, and the creation of a Jewish state.

Conclusion

The story of Leo Motzkin is a story of the struggle for the rights of the Jewish people, the promotion of Hebrew, and the creation of a Jewish state. His contribution to the development of world Jewry is hard to overestimate.

Now, as you walk the streets of Kiryat Motzkin, remember that his name is associated with a person whose ideas and efforts laid the foundation for many of modern Israel’s achievements.

We, the team at NANews – News of Israel, are proud to share such important stories that unite the Jewish and Ukrainian peoples.

Read more stories about outstanding Jews connected with Ukraine and Israel in our section “Jews from Ukraine“ on the NANews website – #євреїзукраїни