Zelensky lights Hanukkah candles with top Ukrainian rabbis, wishes for ‘victory of light over darkness’

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky marks the first night of Hanukkah at a candle-lighting ceremony with several of Ukraine’s leading rabbis.

“Today, we mark both Christmas and the beginning of Hanukkah,” writes Zelensky, who is Jewish, on X. “It is very good that in Ukraine we can celebrate such holidays with respect for each other, communicate, live together and wish different people the same victory—the victory of light over darkness.”

His post is accompanied by a video of the candle-lighting ceremony, in which he uses a menorah he says was gifted to him by Argentina’s President Javier Milei.

“I congratulate the Jewish community on this holiday,” Zelensky adds. “I wish Jewish families peace, joy, and a prosperous future. May the Hanukkiah shine in every home, granting strength, filling hearts with new hopes, and deepening faith in the power of truth and justice.”

Today, we mark both Christmas and the beginning of Hanukkah. It is very good that in Ukraine we can celebrate such holidays with respect for each other, communicate, live together and wish different people the same victory—the victory of light over darkness.

And today, together… pic.twitter.com/GxSQNm7jTr

— Volodymyr Zelenskyy / Володимир Зеленський (@ZelenskyyUa) December 25, 2024