More than 30,000 Hasidic Jews have already arrived in Ukraine to celebrate the Jewish New Year - the SBGSU
Kyiv • UNN
More than 31,000 Hasidic Jews have already arrived in Ukraine, with the largest flow coming through Poland and Romania. More than 40,000 pilgrims are expected in total.
Tens of thousands of Hasidic pilgrims have already arrived in Ukraine to visit the grave of their spiritual leader in Uman. The largest influx was recorded over the past three days, while most arrivals are currently taking place through the borders with Poland, Romania, and Moldova. Andriy Demchenko, spokesperson for the State Border Guard Service of Ukraine, told UNN journalist more about the situation at the border.
Details
The pilgrims began arriving back in late August. At present, according to the spokesperson, the exact total number of Hasidic pilgrims can be determined only by counting those who cross the border.
The arrival of Hasidic pilgrims in Ukraine began as early as the 20s of August. Every day, either several hundred or several dozen pilgrims were entering the country, meaning there had been no such massive influx since then. But over the past three days—September 7, 8, and 9—the largest number has entered Ukraine. For example, 13,700 Hasidic pilgrims entered Ukraine yesterday, and a total of 11,600 on Monday and Tuesday
In total, since the organized groups began arriving in Ukraine, border guards have recorded the arrival of tens of thousands of pilgrims.
We are referring to organized groups of Hasidic pilgrims in these statistics. If someone is traveling separately, or we cannot say that they are traveling directly to Uman, they will not be included in these statistics. Therefore, we can speak only about the groups we record at the border. Since the 20s of August, more than 31,000 Hasidic pilgrims have already entered Ukraine
At the same time, no emergency situations related to the arrival of pilgrims have so far been recorded at the border, although some Hasidic pilgrims have nevertheless been denied entry to Ukraine for various reasons.
Fortunately, there have been no unusual situations related to the entry of Hasidic pilgrims during this period. As citizens of foreign countries, Hasidic pilgrims cross our border in accordance with the provisions of the law governing border crossings by foreigners. If they do not meet certain criteria, they may also be denied permission to cross the border. In total, 13 Hasidic pilgrims were denied entry to Ukraine
The largest influx of pilgrims traditionally occurs over the several days preceding the start of the Jewish New Year celebrations, known as Rosh Hashanah. Hasidic pilgrims come, in particular, to Uman to visit and pay respects at the grave of their spiritual leader, Tzadik Nachman of Breslov, who was the great-grandson of the founder of Hasidism. Before his death, he instructed that he be buried precisely in this place and that his followers visit his grave during the celebration of the Jewish New Year.
The largest influx of Hasidic pilgrims occurs three to four days before the start of their New Year. This year, the celebrations begin on September 11 and end on September 13, so, in fact, there will still be such a massive influx today, while starting tomorrow the entry of Hasidic pilgrims into Ukraine will drop to almost zero
The route most frequently used by pilgrims to enter Ukraine has also changed, and, according to the spokesperson, pilgrims are currently using the Polish and Romanian routes most actively.
Until Monday, September 7, Hasidic pilgrims crossed the border both through Moldova and through the border with European countries, but until Monday the preference was predominantly for the route through Moldova. Since the seventh, there has been a greater influx through European countries, with the border crossings with Poland and Romania being chosen most actively. Speaking about the entire border, 13,000 people per day does not constitute a heavy burden on the checkpoints
Photographs of large queues of pilgrims at the Polish-Ukrainian border, in particular near the Medyka–Shehyni crossing, have also appeared online, Andriy Demchenko says. At the same time, border guards note that such images do not always reflect the actual situation along the entire border, because queues may quickly disappear after an organized group has passed through.
If an organized group was brought to the border by bus, got off, and joined the queue for pedestrian crossing, one can take a photograph showing that there are huge queues there. But this queue will disappear within a fairly short period of time, and it will no longer be there. Until the next bus brings another group of similar Hasidic pilgrims
This year, Ukraine expects approximately 40,000 pilgrims to arrive, but a more precise figure can be determined only after the main influx has ended. For now, on the eve of the celebrations, the border continues to receive organized groups.
According to various forecasts, I have seen that there will be at least 40,000. If today is as active as yesterday, then, of course, the number of Hasidic pilgrims entering Ukraine will exceed 40,000. We will be able to give the exact number tomorrow