Ukraine: Russia is targeting Jewish sites; what else must happen for Israel to help?

The Ukrainian Embassy in Israel claimed Friday that Russia is deliberately targeting synagogues and Jewish centers in Ukraine as it implored Jerusalem to provide defense aid.

“Nazi Russians continue to intentionally destroy synagogues and centers of Jewish culture throughout Ukraine. What else needs to happen for the Israeli government to help Ukraine in self-defense?” the embassy wrote in a Facebook post.

The statement was accompanied by a number of photos, apparently of Jewish sites damaged in the fighting, but no further evidence was provided to confirm deliberate targeting.

They included a picture of the Hillel center in Kharkiv before it was destroyed, as well as what appeared to be the site of the Babyn Yar Memorial, where thousands of Jews were massacred during the Holocaust. The memorial itself was not hit when Russia struck a nearby communications antenna in the first days of the war, but the surrounding area was.

Ukraine’s Ambassador to Israel Yevgen Korniychuk has repeatedly slammed Israel for its refusal to provide military aid to Ukraine, including defensive equipment such as helmets and flak jackets.

Jerusalem has sought to walk a tightrope to maintain good relations with both Ukraine and Russia, the latter of which controls the airspace over Syria and has given Israel a green-light to operate against Iranian proxies there.

As such, it has refused repeated Ukrainian requests for military aid of any kind. The policy has even angered some of Israel’s biggest advocates in the US, such as Republican Senator Lindsay Graham. They have questioned why Jerusalem is not stepping up when it receives billions in military aid from Washington.

Israel has, however, provided large amounts of humanitarian aid to Ukraine. It is in the process of establishing a field hospital in western Ukraine and sent over large generators earlier this week.

Israel has pointed to its neutral position as an asset that has enabled Prime Minister Naftali Bennett to assist as a mediator between Kyiv and Moscow, but Korniychuk has dismissed this as an excuse for not being more actively supportive.

Both sides in the conflict have repeatedly accused each other of “Nazism.”

The mayor of the western Ukrainian city of Lviv Andriy Sadovy told Channel 13 Friday that a missile defense system like the ones Israel has could have prevented much of the damage that his country has incurred.

“No place in Ukraine is really safe. If we had a missile defense system like in Israel, maybe it would have been. Ukraine these days is like David being attacked by Goliath,” he said.

“I think we should have an air defense system. Israel is trying to walk a tightrope [with its position on the war], but I believe that Israeli politicians who support Ukraine will have a good future because everyone understands the Russian aggression, and Israeli citizens can influence politicians’ decisions,” Sadovy added.

It is not clear that Israel has the capacity to provide missile defense systems to Ukraine even if wanted to, as they are actively deployed around the country.

The criticism from Ukraine’s embassy came a day after it went after Jerusalem over its policy toward refugees fleeing the Russian invasion.

The treatment of Ukrainians who flee to Israeli soil “is not covering the main challenges for non-Jewish refugees from Ukraine,” the embassy said in a statement. “Russia is committing genocide of Ukrainians, killing thousands of civilians, while the Israeli government inspects each and every refugee from Ukraine with a fine-toothed comb.”

The government has come under heavy fire for its response to the influx of refugees — particularly those who are not eligible for Israeli citizenship under the Law of Return due to Jewish ancestry — and its handling of the issue has been marred by unclear policies, backtracking and occasional infighting.

“We hope that the government, whose nation experienced the refugee life throughout its existence, will embrace those who are saving their own lives and lives of their children — looking for a temporary shelter from horrors of war,” the embassy said.

From the start of fighting when Russia invaded Ukraine on February 24 until Thursday, over 10,000 Ukrainians have arrived in Israel. Of those, some 8,000 have not immigrated and are not eligible to do so.