Israel Calls On 15,000 Israelis In Ukraine To Leave, Initiates Air Evacuation

JERUSALEM (VINnews) — Israel has called on its citizens residing in the Ukraine to leave the country immediately amid concerns of a Russian invasion which could take place in the middle of the week according to intelligence reports. Currently there are an estimated 15,000 Israelis in the Ukraine, although only 4,500 have registered with the Foreign Ministry so far requesting a flight back to Israel.

In the meantime, Israeli airlines have started to increase flights to Ukraine to aid the evacuation. Israel’s El Al, Israir and Arkia airlines are offering rescue flights. 22 flights are expected to leave the Ukraine for Israel during the course of the week. In the event of war breaking out, Defense Minister Gantz said Saturday that he had directed security forces to prepare to evacuate Israelis from Ukraine via other methods. However the government hopes to add flights and enable whoever wants to leave to escape on a civilian flight.

The Biden administration estimates that Russia could invade Ukraine in the coming days. Israel has maintained contacts with the US administration regarding the Ukraine crisis, and is receiving regular updates from the Americans, including after US President Joe Biden spoke on Saturday with Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin, according to a report by Ynet. Russia has denied that it intends to invade the Ukraine but US intelligence suggests that the invasion could happen within a few days.

Israel’s Foreign Ministry said it has begun working in an emergency capacity. Though embassy staff’s families and diplomats’ families are being evacuated for their safety, the embassy itself will continue to operate and will even be reinforced with additional staff from Israel to boost consular services for Israelis wishing to leave the country.

The Foreign Ministry issued a new “stricter” travel warning for Ukraine on Saturday, urging Israelis currently in the country to leave “as soon as possible.” Israelis planning on traveling to Ukraine should cancel their trips, the ministry added. Diaspora Affairs Minister Nachman Shai even said that Israel must begin readying plans for the “emergency immigration” of local Jews from Ukraine in case of a Russian invasion.

On Saturday, Bennett called on Israeli citizens to leave Ukraine immediately, following two meetings he held with top security and diplomatic officials, including Foreign Minister Lapid, Defense Minister Gantz, IDFChief of Staff Aviv Kohavi, National Security Adviser Eyal Hulata, Shin Bet chief Ronen Bar.  Despite being Shabbat observant, Bennett held the meetings in order to “expedite preparations to evacuate Israelis from the country,” which he viewed as a life-threatening emergency.

“It was agreed to raise the travel warning for the area, along with calling on Israeli citizens to immediately leave,” Bennett’s spokesperson said in a statement.

Meanwhile Israelis in Uman are not hurrying to leave, despite a call by the city’s rabbi, Rabbi Yaakov Jan, for Israelis to leave the country.

Shlomi Elisha, head of Shmira Ukraine, told Chareidim 10 that “the situation is OK, not like it is described in the Israeli media. There is no sense of war and no such headlines. We are aware of the situation and monitoring what is published in media outlets. The situation is currently fine. If we weren’t connected to media, we wouldn’t know there was a crisis.”

Elisha said that Israelis in Uman were not leaving, although a possible escape route has been planned in coordination with the Israeli embassy in the event of war. Uman is situated in Western Ukraine, far from the current front and is close to other European countries which could be accessed in the event of war.

Elisha added that Israelis who had booked flights to the Ukraine had asked whether to come and responded that “each person should do what he thinks best.” Elisha estimates that there are many more Israelis in the Ukraine who had not reported their presence there and had no intention of returning, since “they don’t believe the situation is so dramatic.”

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