Israel Funds Security for Hasidic Pilgrims Traveling to Uman for Rosh Hashanah

The Israeli government will cover approximately 750,000 shekels to secure the journey of tens of thousands of Hasidic pilgrims traveling to Uman, Ukraine, for Rosh Hashanah, according to i24NEWS reporter Ari Kalman. Due to the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war and the closure of Ukrainian airspace, pilgrims cannot fly directly to Uman. Instead, they must land in neighboring countries and continue by land. After difficulties crossing Moldova last year, Romania has been designated as the main transit point this year. Pilgrims will land in Romania and proceed by buses and vehicles into Ukraine.

Romanian authorities have requested reinforcement of security with Israeli police officers to assist local forces, mainly in communication with travelers and managing crowd flow at transit points. Recently, Israel's Ministry of Foreign Affairs contacted several government ministries, including the Interior and Transportation Ministries, to share the security funding burden. Alongside ground preparations, the Foreign Ministry established a dedicated command center to coordinate between Israeli and Romanian authorities and monitor the pilgrims' movements to and from Uman.

This special arrangement aims to prevent last year's logistical challenges and ensure the smooth transit of tens of thousands of pilgrims through Romania amid the ongoing conflict in Ukraine.