Helping Jews of Ukraine
As we watch developments, we are reminded of the 200,000 Jews of Ukraine.
At the time of going to press, there are reports that Russia claims to be withdrawing some of its troops massed on the border with western Ukraine and hopefully an invasion is no longer imminent.
Some observers say the brinkmanship of Vladimir Putin has already scored him a tactical victory. It is now far less likely Ukraine will seek admission – or be admitted into – NATO, a prospect the Russian leader strongly opposes.
As US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said in Australia last week, a Russian invasion of the part of Ukraine not already seized in 2014 would challenge fundamental principles of international relations, such as changing another country’s borders by force or limiting its policies and alliances.
As we watch developments, we are reminded of the 200,000 Jews of Ukraine and how this latest conflict will affect this community, which includes not only relatives and friends of members of our own community, but also 37,000 low-income elderly, among them some 9900 Holocaust survivors.
In 2014, when Russia stormed into parts of Ukraine’s east, Jews quickly experienced the terror of invasion, with the firebombing of the Giymat Rosa Synagogue in Zaporizhia.
However, the American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee (JDC) was able to offer critical support to imperilled Jews. JDC now has four field offices in Ukraine.
As Asher Ostrin, then JDC’s senior executive of international affairs, told The AJN in 2014, many Jewish Ukrainians are elderly and rely on small government pensions, and some are house-bound and need home care because the social safety net is weak. The 2014 civil unrest made it unsafe for social workers to move through the streets.
Additionally, basic prices rose, while pension payments stopped due to the crisis, as mail deliveries became sporadic and government offices shut down.
The elderly were also hit hard by disruptions to supplies of hospital equipment. But JDC managed to assemble mobile crews of volunteers to ensure that some 70,000 Jews were regularly contacted to gauge their immediate needs.
Our thoughts and prayers are with the Jews of Ukraine, but it is reassuring to know that even if the crisis worsens, a strong degree of help is at hand.
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