Jewish immigrants fleeing the war in Ukraine arrive at Ben Gurion airport near Tel Aviv, on March 6, 2022. (Tomer Neuberg/Flash90)
In February of 2022, Israel took down posters asking for Ukraine refugees in Israel, volunteer to fight Putin, and Kirill. These refugees asked Israel to send arms to Ukraine. That request was denied. Ukrainians were under attack at the Gaza border. Several are hostages. Why not arm them to protect their own people?
Democrats are demanding to know why Blinken, a Jew, sent arms to Israel – without getting the permission of Congress.
John Presco
“At the same time, any sane person understands that the tiny nation-state of the Jewish people cannot be a substitute for the various European countries, including Ukraine’s neighbors, who have opened their borders generously [to refugees],” she said.”
Agroup of 19 predominantly Democratic lawmakers is calling on Secretary of State Antony Blinken to provide answers about why he bypassed Congress last month to approve arms sales to Israel.
“It is essential for Congress to be able to conduct oversight of these arms transfers and determine whether they are consistent with humanitarian principles and U.S. law, and whether they advance or harm U.S. national security,” the lawmakers wrote in a letter dated Friday and obtained by CNN.
Ukrainian arrivals at Ben Gurion Airport, on March 10, 2022. (Facebook screenshot; used in accordance with Clause 27a of the Copyright Law)
This is the first report on the crisis of the Ukranian People who find themselves at the mercy of the Jewish People and Jewish Government. I suggest Bill Ackman step in and use his billions to make Israel, and the Jews – look good to the whole world! Going after the history of Black Slaves, and their Genocide, has got to be the INSANEST PLAN – of all time! Mohammed Allie, – would agree!
Ukraine Embassy in Israel Calls for Volunteers to Fight Against Russian Invasion
The embassy removed the post calling to volunteer after Ukrainian Ambassador Yevgen Korniychuk told Haaretz that Kyiv is particularly interested in combat medicsShare in FacebookShare in TwitterShare in WhatsApp
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A Ukrainian soldier runs holding his weapon outside a military facility, in Kyiv, Ukraine, on Saturday.Credit: AP Photo/Emilio MorenattiSam SokolGet email notification for articles from Sam SokolFollow
Feb 26, 2022
The Ukrainian embassy in Tel Aviv called on Saturday for volunteers to fight on its behalf, stating that it began compiling lists of people “who wish to participate in combat actions against the Russian aggressor.”
Addressing “people who wish to participate in the protection of Ukraine from Russian military aggression” in a Facebook post the embassy called on people who “are ready to defend the sovereignty of Ukraine” to submit their personal details and a description of their military expertise in order to be contacted regarding opportunities to serve. The embassy later removed the post.
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Speaking with Haaretz, Ambassador Yevgen Korniychuk said that his staff have already “started gathering volunteers,” and that he was particularly interested in combat medics. Ukraine recently opened up recruitment to its Armed Forces to citizens of any age and has been arming civilians in its last ditch effort to repel the Russians.
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“We have a few people ready who are willing to go, and we actually have some requests from people who want to go as fighters to the armed forces. We are forming those groups – we should probably have [transit] corridors ready for them maybe tomorrow or at the latest on Monday. We have had a lot of volunteers,” he said.
The Israeli Foreign Ministry declined to comment on the Ukrainian call for volunteers.
On Friday, Ukraine’s President, Volodymyr Zelensky, called Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett and asked Israel to mediate a ceasefire with Russia.
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The New York Times quoted Ukrainian Ambassador Korniychuk, as confirming the call. Separately, Israel’s state-owned Kan public television said Zelensky called Bennett on Friday as Kyiv was under siege.
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Zelensky argued to Bennett that Israel is the only country that enjoys close relations with both countries.
Korniychuk said the proposal was to have the talks in Israel. Russia reportedly has offered to launch talks in Belarus, its ally, which is facilitating its massive invasion.
Russian forces are currently pressing their attack on Ukraine, unleashing airstrikes on cities and military bases and sending in troops and tanks from three sides in an attack that could rewrite the global post-Cold War security order.
There is currently street fighting in Kyiv, the capital, and U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said the city “could well be under siege” in what U.S. officials believe is a brazen attempt by Russian President Vladimir Putin to dismantle the government and install his own regime.
While Israel has offered humanitarian aid, Ukraine has long been critical of Israel’s stance on its conflict with Russia.
Over 12,000 Ukrainians have fled to Israel, 8,000 of them ineligible for citizenship
According to Shaked, 3,650 are eligible to immigrate under Law of Return; 1,000 have left by choice or been refused entry since start of Russian invasion
By TOI STAFF18 March 2022, 2:08 pm
Ukrainian Jews who fled war zones in Ukraine arrive on a rescue flight at Ben Gurion airport near Tel Aviv, on March 17, 2022. (Yossi Zeliger/Flash90)
Since the start of fighting when Russia invaded Ukraine on February 24, over 12,600 Ukrainians have arrived in Israel, Interior Minister Ayelet Shaked said Friday.
Of those, some 3,650 are eligible to immigrate under Israel’s Law of Return or have already, according to Shaked.
Another 1,050 of them have left Israel either by choice or have been refused entry, she added. According to the Ynet news site, 290 were denied entry.
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That means there are some 7,900 Ukrainian refugees currently in Israel who are not eligible for Israeli citizenship.
Shaked capped the number of refugees ineligible for citizenship to be admitted at 5,000 (in addition to 20,000 who were in the country before war erupted). Amid a public outcry, however, she later announced that any relatives of Israelis will also be granted entry without a cap.
However, it remained unclear what proximity of relatives exactly would be acceptable.
Interior Minister Ayelet Shaked sets out Israel’s Ukrainian refugee entry policy, at Ben Gurion Airport, on March 13, 2022. (Roy Alima/Flash90)
The issue of Ukrainian refugees has been a highly contentious one in Israel. Shaked, with the support of many right-wing lawmakers, initially severely limited the number of refugees who could enter the country, and required the families of those coming in to put down large monetary deposits that would only be returned upon their exit from the country.
Some would-be entrants were kept waiting for hours and even days at the airport as well.
In the face of a public outcry against these practices, as well as criticism from government ministers, the Interior Ministry first did away with the deposit requirement, and then arranged for the refugees to be accommodated at a hotel while their paperwork was processed.
Shaked first announced last week that Israel was preparing to take in 100,000 refugees who are eligible for citizenship under the Law of Return, meaning people with at least one Jewish grandparent.
On Thursday, she reportedly caused further tumult over Israel’s refugee policy, after saying there would be “no chance” Israel would pay for medical insurance for refugees who have arrived in Israel.
Though the government has eased its policies on refugees, it has continued to face criticism for its handling of the issue.
On Wednesday, Kan news reported that the Population and Immigration Authority had unnecessarily deported dozens of Ukrainian refugees because one of its forms had a translation error, resulting in applicants inadvertently declaring that they had stayed in Israel illegally in the past — when they thought they were saying only that they had previously visited the country.
Over 100,000 Ukrainians fled the country in the past 24 hours, the UN said Friday, pushing the total number of refugees to more than 3.1 million since the conflict began.
Israel said to turn away 200 Ukrainian refugees as policy continues to cause uproar
Interior Minister Shaked defends position, saying ‘vast majority’ of those fleeing war allowed to stay; dozens protest against treatment outside airport
By TOI STAFF11 March 2022, 6:58 pm
Illustrative: Jewish immigrants fleeing the war in Ukraine on a rescue flight sponsored by Keren Hayesod arrive at Ben Gurion airport near Tel Aviv, on March 9, 2022. (Tomer Neuberg/Flash90)
Israel has turned away dozens of Ukrainian refugees, according to a Friday report, as the country’s policy toward those fleeing the Russian invasion continues to stoke controversy.
Around 200 Ukrainian refugees have been turned away after arriving at Israel’s Ben Gurion International Airport, Channel 12 reported. The time frame for the deportations was not clear.
Interior Minister Ayelet Shaked defended her refugee policy on Friday, as dozens protested outside the airport with signs reading “a Jew does not expel a refugee.”2/2
“Contrary to criticism, the vast majority of those who came to Israel were allowed to enter and stay here until the [war] passes,” Shaked wrote in a Facebook post.
“At the same time, any sane person understands that the tiny nation-state of the Jewish people cannot be a substitute for the various European countries, including Ukraine’s neighbors, who have opened their borders generously [to refugees],” she said.
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She said there are around 25,000 Ukrainians currently in Israel.
Interior Minister Ayelet Shaked holds a press conference at the Knesset, on March 8, 2022. (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90)
Over 2 million Ukrainians have fled the war, with the majority going to neighboring Poland. Millions more are internally displaced.
Israel has agreed to allow some 20,000 Ukrainians who were residing in the country illegally or were on tourist visas before the invasion to remain, while also granting temporary visas to a further 5,000 non-Jewish refugees escaping the war. All Jewish Ukrainians are allowed in and given citizenship under the Law of Return.
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Channel 12 news reported that Israel might soon reach its 5,000-person cap on Ukrainian refugees arriving since the start of the war who are not eligible for citizenship, set by Shaked on Tuesday, with estimates saying that 3,500 have already arrived in Israel.
Besides the refugee policies, the treatment of those arriving at Israel’s borders has also caused an uproar.
Footage aired by Channel 12 on Thursday showed large numbers of people inside one of the airport’s terminals, with young children sleeping on the floor and on a baggage carousel, as well as an elderly woman being treated after apparently fainting.
“Those images did not go over my head,” Shaked said, adding that she had spoken with “the relevant authorities to take care of the issue.”
Ukrainian arrivals at Ben Gurion Airport, on March 10, 2022. (Facebook screenshot; used in accordance with Clause 27a of the Copyright Law)
Israeli officials said Thursday that they would transfer all Ukrainian refugees awaiting clarity on their entry status from the airport to a hotel.
Some of the refugees were said to be waiting to enter the country for several days, without being given adequate food or a suitable place to rest. Footage aired by the TV network Thursday showed many people, young and old, sitting in plastic chairs, laying on thin mattresses, or resting on the terminal floor itself.
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Prime Minister Naftali Bennett proclaimed earlier Thursday that Israel must “open its doors and hearts” to Ukrainian Jewish refugees and ensure that their immigration and absorption is as smooth as possible, although the footage undermined his message.
Families of the refugees said that those who arrived in Israel under the Law of Return, which grants them eligibility for Israeli citizenship, were also among those forced to wait. Another person waiting for his family to be processed said that many in the airport said they were willing to go back to Ukraine after the treatment they received.
Soon after the footage was aired, Shaked said she was issuing an immediate order to change the current policy, and transfer any Ukrainians waiting at the airport to a hotel where they can stay until their status is clarified.
The Population and Immigration Authority said that the mass of people and their treatment was due to several flights bringing refugees to the airport at the same time, causing congestion for officials.
Jewish immigrants fleeing the war in Ukraine arrive at Ben Gurion airport near Tel Aviv, on March 6, 2022. (Tomer Neuberg/Flash90)
Immigration Minister Pnina Tamano-Shata said that the situation at the airport was unacceptable and that she had brought it up with Shaked.
“I recommend that the interior minister should demand answers and lead her teams, reinforce them… so that there will be food, water, diapers, everything they need,” she said. “This is something we cannot accept.”
Tamano-Shata expressed further displeasure with the treatment of the refugees during a cabinet meeting on Thursday, saying: “It’s shameful. It’s causing chaos for us in the world,” according to transcripts published by Channel 12.
Prime Minister Naftali Bennet (center) and Immigration Minister Pnina Tamano-Shata (right) at Ministerial Committee on Aliyah and Integration, Jerusalem, on March 7, 2022. (Amos Ben-Gershom/GPO)
“It makes no sense that in the Jewish state, a woman and her daughter arrive from Ukraine and would not be able to take a shower for three days due to immigration policy,” Ben Gurion Airport director Shmuel Zakai was quoted as saying.
An official from the Population and Immigration Authority at the cabinet meeting claimed that Israel does not want to let through some of those who have arrived, since “if they get in, they won’t leave.” Following the 2014 war between Ukraine and Russia, thousands of Ukrainians came to Israel, with many staying illegally after their visas expired.
Following the release of the reports about the airport conditions, Channel 12 reported that Shaked has instructed for a permanent representative to be present at the airport, who will contact people on their way to Israel and ensure that those who arrive are eligible to enter and have all the documents needed.
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