War in Ukraine Forces Israel Into a Delicate Balancing Act, The New York Times
On the day Russia invaded Ukraine, Israel’s prime minister, Naftali Bennett, did not mention Russia once. Mr. Bennett said he prayed for peace, called for dialogue and promised support for Ukrainian citizens. But he did not hint at Moscow’s involvement, much less condemn it — and it was left, as preplanned, to Mr. Bennett’s foreign minister, Yair Lapid, to criticize Moscow in a separate statement that day. The pair’s cautious double act embodied the bind, in which the war in Ukraine has placed Israel.
Ukraine Tries Recruiting Israelis and Other International Volunteers to Fight the Russian Army, Jewish Telegraphic Agency
Ukraine’s embassy in Israel tried to recruit Israelis to join the Ukrainian fight against Russia in a Facebook post Saturday. The call for volunteers from Israel came as Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky, who is Jewish, asked Israel to mediate talks between Russia and Ukraine. Israel is one of the few Western countries with good relations with both countries and has tried to maintain that status through the early days of the war.
Israel Helps Evacuate Lebanese, Syrian and Egyptian Citizens From Ukraine, Haaretz
Israeli diplomats have been assisting Lebanese, Syrian and Egyptian citizens to evacuate from Ukraine, transporting them from the war-torn nation alongside Israeli refugees, the Foreign Ministry confirmed on Sunday. A spokesman for the ministry stated that citizens of several regional states, including those currently in a state of war with Israel had boarded a bus organized by Israeli diplomats on the Polish side of the border and that the embassy is also ready to “help Israeli residents from East Jerusalem.”
Putin Said Not to Take Up Israeli PM’s Mediation Offer, The Times of Israel
Israel’s offer to mediate in talks between Russia and Ukraine may be unlikely to lead to any concrete negotiations, but the Jewish state’s involvement could be seen as a positive move on the global stage. Citing a senior Israeli official, the Kan public broadcaster reported Sunday that the government believes Israel’s positioning between the two nations “teaches something significant about the position of Israel in the region.”
Ukraine Tries Recruiting Israelis and Other International Volunteers to Fight the Russian Army, Jewish Telegraphic Agency
Ukraine’s embassy in Israel tried to recruit Israelis to join the Ukrainian fight against Russia in a Facebook post Saturday. The call for volunteers from Israel came as Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky, who is Jewish, asked Israel to mediate talks between Russia and Ukraine. Israel is one of the few Western countries with good relations with both countries and has tried to maintain that status through the early days of the war.
Those Loyal to Democracy in Israel Must Wake Up, Haaretz
Zehava Gal-On, former MK and Chairwoman of Meretz, argues, “There cannot be a democracy in a country that insists on the de facto annexation of territory in which a large foreign population lives. The left warned of this situation for decades, and the right tried to suppress it. Over the past decade there has been movement from suppression to acceptance: If Israel must choose between giving up territory or giving up democracy, the far right chooses to give up democracy. It’s no coincidence that the right wing that crowds around Ben-Gvir is the right wing that talks about a ‘second Nakba’ while denying that there was ever a first one. There is no other solution: There will either be democracy here, or an ethnic dictatorship.”
How Will Israel Treat Ukranian Refugees?, The Times of Israel
Tomer Warsha writes, “Prime Minister Bennett announced that Israel would favor providing any humanitarian aid needed for Ukraine. It is a moral imperative that the state extend a hand to every person in crisis, but first of all, it must issue two clear guidelines: the first, to delay the deportation of Ukrainians living in Israel without status until the situation clears up; the second step is to make it easier for the loved ones of Israeli citizens, in such a way that will allow partners and relatives of Israelis to reach Israel without bureaucratic delays.”