By World Israel News Staff
In the lead-up to the annual Rosh Hashanah pilgrimage to Uman, Ukraine, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu urged potential pilgrims to rethink the trip by reminding them that Jews were not always protected there.
“Israeli citizens traveling to Ukraine must be personally responsible. There are no safeguards there,” he said, before adding, “From a historical perspective, God hasn’t consistently protected us, especially in Europe and Ukraine.”
His remarks ignited a flurry of reactions from religious factions in Israel. The Shas party responded fervently, affirming that God has eternally safeguarded the Jewish populace, a protection they believe is contingent upon adherence to the faith and the commandments of the Torah.
United Torah Judaism MK Yisrael Eichler sternly opposed Netanyahu’s perspective, branding it as “words of ignorance.” Eichler underscored the divine protection accorded to Jews globally, emphasizing that that divine intervention, not Zionist efforts, prevented further tragedy during the Holocaust and shielded Israel in its formative years. He acknowledged the continued divine protection attributing the survival of the Jewish people to “the miracles of Hashem, the God of Israel.”
The pilgrimage to Rabbi Nachman of Breslov’s grave remains a focal point in the Jewish spiritual year for followers of the Breslov Hassidic sect.
Last month, Ukraine threatened Israel it would shut its borders to Israeli pilgrims heading to Uman for Rosh Hashanah in response to Israel’s deportation of Ukrainian tourists.
