Rabbi banned from entering Ukraine hopes to reach Uman "by miracle"

Rabbi Berland heads to Uman for the third time despite being banned from entering Ukraine. Photo: Yonatan Sindel/Flash90

Rabbi Eliezer Berland has left Israel in an attempt to reach the grave of Rabbi Nachman in Ukraine and celebrate the upcoming holiday of Rosh Hashanah with his followers there. According to the publication Maariv, citing sources close to Berland, the rabbi is on the Ukrainian border authorities' blacklist, but his followers believe that the rabbi is a miracle worker and that a miracle could still happen.

In 2022 and 2023, Ukrainian authorities denied him entry into the country. Journalist Shimon Briman, an expert on Israeli-Ukrainian relations, reported that Ukrainian authorities explained their refusal to Berland, saying that during one of his lessons, he had called for the killing of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.

It was also reported that during previous attempts to reach Uman, the rabbi tried to perform a "miracle" by hiding in the trunk of a car belonging to his trusted followers, hoping to secretly enter Ukraine. However, he was discovered at the border checkpoint, and the miracle did not happen.

Rabbi Eliezer Berland, head of the "Shuvu Banim" community in Israel, was found guilty of sexual offenses and was sentenced to 18 months in prison in 2016. He began serving his sentence in 2020 and was released after ten months.

As the UOJ reported, DESS promises to provide all necessary conditions for Hasidic pilgrims in Uman.

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