Yossi Dagan, the head of the Samaria Regional Council, held a conference on Saturday night for the hundreds of Ukrainian refugees who have fled their homes to the border with Romania, and invited them to immigrate to Samaria or receive asylum there until the crisis passes.
Dagan landed in Romania on Friday morning together with a delegation from Samaria, including people originally from the former Soviet Union, and traveled to the Ukrainian border to meet with Jewish refugees at a hostel hired by Chabad Jews from Israel and Europe.
"Our thoughts are with you in Samaria," he said, "and we decided not to settle for mere thoughts and words but to actually do something. So here we are to personally invite you to Samaria where we will provide you with a home."
Dagan described some of the unique benefits of living in Samaria, including the proximity to the employment opportunities in the center of the country. Those listening responded with great enthusiasm and even applauded. Immediately after the conference, they stood in line to hear more details and register for immigration. Many of the refugees related the difficulties they experienced fleeing the war.
"It was terrifying living with the bombings, and my husband and I decided to take our children and leave," said Alona Andienko. "This has been very difficult for us, and even more so for our children, so I hope that we will be able to immigrate to Israel soon."
Oleg Baskov, a professor and lecturer at the University of Kharkiv who also attended the Samaria Refugee Conference, added: "Every day we hear missiles, windows shatter, and we have no idea how long this situation will last. Just a few weeks ago we were living normal lives and then suddenly one day we were terrified to leave the house. At that point, we decided to get up and leave."
"The communities of Samaria are warm, welcoming communities with people who want to help and know how to do so," said Dagan. "The effects of this war are being felt across the world, but in Samaria we decided to take action. We decided that the right thing to do, from a humanitarian and a Zionist perspective, was to come here and convey a clear message of love for all Jews, and to help refugees reach Samaria and find a home.
"Many of the people here have spent three days on the road, with all their worldly possessions packed into just one small bag," he added. "Many of their homes will have been bombed, and their lives will never be the same again. We came to support our Jewish brothers in their time of greatest need and to remind them that they are never alone."
The delegation Dagan headed included the Council's director-general, Amitai Roitman, the advisor in charge of aliyah absorption in Samaria, Rafi Avital, and several Russian-speaking residents, including the director of the Yair Sigal Cohen farm. The Samaria Regional Council has already begun accepting Jewish refugees from Ukraine. One family has arrived in Revava, three have joined the community of Yitzhar, and many more are waiting for their chance to come.
