Entrance to Rebbe Nachman's tomb in Uman
Entrance to Rebbe Nachman's tomb in UmanISTOCK

A deal has apparently been reached between leaders of the Breslov Hasidic movement and the Ukrainian government, paving the way for a limited number of visitors to fly from Israel to Ukraine for the annual pilgrimage to Uman, according to a report by Kikar Hashabbat.

The report Sunday cites an announcement released by the National Secretariat of the Breslov Movement to various Breslov communities throughout Israel.

In the announcement, the Breslov secretariat claimed that a deal has been reached with the Ukrainian government which will allow 150 Breslov Hasidim from Israel to fly to Ukraine ahead of the Rosh Hashanah holiday, which begins this Friday evening.

In most years, tens of thousands of pilgrims, mostly from Israel, fly to Ukraine to visit Uman, where the founder of the Breslov Hasidic movement, Rebbe Nachman, is buried.

This year, however, the Ukrainian government announced a total ban on foreigners entering the country from September 1st through the 28th, after the Yom Kippur holiday.

Ukrainian authorities have expressed concerns mass gatherings in Uman could lead to new outbreaks of the coronavirus. In recent weeks, a number of confrontations between locals and visiting Jews have been reported, including several physical attacks by local youths on Israeli visitors.

The deal has yet to be confirmed by the Ukrainian government.