Israel News

An unprecedented public dispute has erupted in Israel between Defense Minister Israel Katz and the IDF command. On the evening of August 2, 2026, Katz announced on the “Patriots” program on Channel 14 that the new commander of the Central Military District should be Major General David “Dado” Bar-Kalifa, who will replace Major General Avi Blut.

However, almost immediately after the minister’s speech, the army press service reported that his statement was not coordinated with Chief of Staff Eyal Zamir. The IDF emphasized: Blut continues to command the Central District, enjoys the full confidence of the Chief of Staff, and decisions on replacing generals should be made in accordance with established procedures.

On the morning of August 3, Katz’s office tried to shift the focus. Representatives of the minister stated that he allegedly did not announce the immediate dismissal of Blut, but only confirmed a future personnel rotation proposed by the Chief of Staff himself back in the spring.

As a result, several questions were at the center of the scandal: who appoints generals in Israel, can the defense minister publicly announce the successor of the current commander without coordinating the timing with the Chief of Staff, and is a military commander obliged to abandon a professional security decision if it contradicts the minister’s political line.

What exactly did Israel Katz say

During an interview on Channel 14, Katz sharply criticized Avi Blut for his actions in the case of settler Tal Inon Dardik.

The minister stated that the commander of the Central District and the Jerusalem District Prosecutor’s Office went to court contrary to his policy. Katz acknowledged that the general might have had legal authority for such a step, but emphasized that military command should consider the decisions of political leadership.

After this, Katz announced that he decided to implement the appointment of Major General Dado Bar-Kalifa to the position of commander of the Central District.

“I announced that I decided to implement the decision — to appoint Major General Dado Bar-Kalifa as the commander of the Central District,” the minister said.

Katz described Bar-Kalifa as a representative of the “generation of heroes and victory” and expressed confidence that he would pursue a more aggressive policy.

From the context of the television appearance, it could be concluded that Katz decided to replace Blut due to disagreements over the Dardik case. This is why the first reports from Israeli media presented the statement as an announcement of the general’s resignation live on air.

The IDF publicly opposed the minister’s version

The reaction of the army press service followed almost immediately.

The IDF stated that the defense minister’s words were not coordinated with Chief of Staff Eyal Zamir. The army separately emphasized that Avi Blut continues to command the Central District “in a complex environment, professionally, courageously, and selflessly.”

“Major General Avi Blut enjoys full confidence,” the statement said.

In addition, the IDF reported that the Chief of Staff does not intend to change commanders in key positions during the current sensitive period. If a decision on a personnel replacement is made, it must be made by the Chief of Staff, after which it will be approved in accordance with existing rules.

This statement was essentially a public refutation of the defense minister’s words. The army command made it clear that there was no agreed decision on the immediate termination of Blut’s powers.

For the Israeli security system, such an exchange of statements is extremely unusual. As noted by NANews — News of Israel, disputes between the defense minister and the Chief of Staff have occurred before, but they were usually discussed in closed meetings, not in a live television broadcast.

Katz stated that it was not about dismissal

After the sharp reaction of the IDF, Katz’s office presented a different version of events.

According to the minister’s representatives, back in late April 2026, Eyal Zamir recommended appointing Dado Bar-Kalifa as the next commander of the Central District. The Chief of Staff allegedly asked Katz to interview the candidate.

In June 2026, the minister met with Bar-Kalifa and concluded that he was a suitable candidate. Therefore, the statement on air, according to Katz’s office, was not about the immediate dismissal of Blut, but about appointing Bar-Kalifa during the next personnel cycle.

Thus, the parties are essentially talking about different things.

Katz’s position	IDF’s position
Zamir recommended Bar-Kalifa back in April	The minister’s statement on August 2 was not coordinated
The minister has already interviewed the candidate	Blut continues to command the district
The appointment should take place in the next personnel cycle	Currently, there are no plans to change key commanders
Katz does not consider his words an immediate dismissal	The official decision must be made by the Chief of Staff

The main dispute, therefore, concerns not only Bar-Kalifa’s candidacy but also the timing, the order of announcing the decision, and who had the right to publicly announce the future replacement.

Who appoints generals in the IDF

The assertion that generals are appointed exclusively by the Chief of Staff is incomplete. But the defense minister cannot unilaterally appoint or remove a district commander.

According to the current system, the Chief of Staff determines candidates for positions at the major general level and presents the chosen candidate to the defense minister. The minister acts as the approving authority.

The State Comptroller of Israel indicated that the Chief of Staff is the body that appoints officers starting from the rank of colonel, and the defense minister approves such appointments. For positions at the major general level, the process takes place directly between the Chief of Staff and the minister: the former determines the candidate, the latter must approve it.

Therefore:

• Katz cannot independently appoint a new district commander without the Chief of Staff’s decision;
• Zamir cannot finalize the appointment without the minister’s approval;
• both parties must agree on the candidate, timing, and order of assuming the position;
• announcing the decision live on air does not replace the official personnel procedure.

The State Comptroller also previously noted that the procedure for appointing major generals was not fully formalized and largely relied on the established practice of negotiations between the defense minister and the Chief of Staff.

This is why the current public dispute has created such a dangerous precedent: each side can claim that the other is interfering with its authority.

The case of Tal Inon Dardik

The immediate reason for the confrontation was the case of settler Tal Inon Dardik.

An administrative restraining order was in effect against him, signed by the commander of the Central District on the recommendation of the Shin Bet. Such orders can prohibit a person from being in certain areas of Judea and Samaria, returning to a specific outpost, contacting certain people, or moving freely.

The decision can be made based on closed intelligence materials that are not always fully provided to the suspect and his lawyers.

Dardik was prohibited from being at the farm outpost where he lived. After violating the order’s conditions, he was detained. Therefore, formally, he was in custody not because of administrative detention without trial, but because of the alleged violation of the administrative restraining order.

According to a Shin Bet document published by Israeli media on July 22, 2026, Dardik is suspected of involvement in violence, abuse, and severe sexual humiliation of a Palestinian.

The police reported that during the investigated incident, a group of Jews attacked Palestinians, among whom were women and children. Several victims, according to the investigation, were tied up, and four required medical assistance. The mere existence of suspicions does not mean that Dardik’s guilt has been established by the court.

No ordinary criminal indictment was filed against him. This is why the security services used administrative measures, relying on closed information about the alleged danger.

Why the commission lifted the restrictions

The military appeals commission did not find Dardik innocent and did not reject the Shin Bet’s intelligence materials.

The dispute concerned whether the commander of the Central District had the right to require Dardik to serve house arrest at his mother-in-law’s house. The commission ruled that a relative cannot be forced to provide her home for the execution of an administrative restriction.

The army was offered to find another realistic solution. This could be another agreed apartment or separate housing that the state would have to rent to enforce the order.

Thus, the commission’s decision was primarily procedural. It did not mean that Dardik was found not involved in the alleged violence or that the Shin Bet abandoned its assessment of his danger.

The minister visited Dardik in custody

Even before the current conflict, Katz took an extremely unusual step — personally met with Dardik at his place of detention.

Along with the minister, reserve Colonel Avichai Tanami, appointed by Katz as a special coordinator for working with the so-called “hill youth,” attended the meeting.

During the meeting, Dardik was offered several alternative options for house arrest. However, he refused them and demanded to be allowed to stay either in his own home or in his parents’ house. At that time, Dardik was on a hunger strike.

On July 28, 2026, Katz stated that due to deficiencies in the order’s issuance, it should not be extended, and the problem should be solved “by other means.”

However, this statement did not mean the immediate cessation of existing restrictions. According to Ynet, the order was calculated to last until the end of 2026. In addition, the appeal of the prosecutor’s office and the Central District concerned not Katz’s decision on future extension, but the court’s requirement to find an enforceable alternative to the current house arrest.

Blut and the prosecutor’s office continued to consider Dardik potentially dangerous and appealed to the Jerusalem District Court, trying to maintain the restrictions in another form.

It was this step that Katz called actions contrary to the minister’s policy.

Avi Blut remains the commander

As of August 3, 2026, Avi Blut has not been officially dismissed and continues to hold the position of commander of the Central District.

He assumed the position in July 2024, replacing Major General Yehuda Fuchs, who commanded the district for about three years.

Blut comes from the religious Zionism community, wears a knitted kippah, and previously held positions as commander of the Judea and Samaria Division, commander of the commando brigade, commander of the “Maglan” unit, and military secretary to the prime minister.

Therefore, the current dispute is difficult to present as a usual confrontation between a right-wing government and an allegedly “left-wing” army general. In reality, it is about a deeper question: is a district commander obliged to follow the professional assessment of the IDF and the Shin Bet, even if this assessment contradicts the defense minister’s policy.

Reaction of the opposition and the settler movement

Katz’s statement was criticized by representatives of the opposition and former high-ranking military officials.

Former Prime Minister Naftali Bennett stated that the government is trying to “dismantle the IDF from within.” Former Chief of Staff Gadi Eisenkot called the incident an unprecedented decline in relations between political and military leadership and emphasized that the army should not become a tool for party primaries.

Reserve Major General Ofer Winter also criticized the manner in which Katz announced the commander’s replacement.

Notably, representatives of the settler movement also spoke out against the way Katz announced the replacement of the commander.

The head of the Beit El local council, Shay Alon, stated that the unexpected announcement live on air without coordination with the Chief of Staff harms the settlements and the fight against terror. The Judea and Samaria Settlements Council also supported Blut, noting his results in countering terrorist structures.

At the same time, Knesset member Limor Son Har-Melech from the “Otzma Yehudit” party supported Katz. She stated that Blut allegedly paid more attention to prosecuting settler activists than fighting Palestinian terror and acted contrary to the elected leadership’s policy.

Why this conflict is more important than the fate of one general

The dispute over Avi Blut and Tal Inon Dardik goes far beyond a single personnel appointment.

Political leadership has the right to determine Israel’s overall defense policy. However, operational decisions about specific threats are made by professional structures — the army, the Shin Bet, the police, and the prosecutor’s office.

If a minister can force a military commander to abandon a security assessment due to political pressure, there is a risk of politicizing IDF decisions. But if the army command can completely ignore the orders of the elected minister, the opposite problem arises — the erosion of civilian control over the armed forces.

As emphasized by NANews — News of Israel, the stability of the Israeli system depends not on the victory of one side, but on adherence to procedure. The Chief of Staff must professionally select candidates, the defense minister must approve appointments and determine overall policy, and decisions on specific cases must be made based on law and verifiable security assessments.

At the moment, Katz considers Dado Bar-Kalifa the future commander of the Central District. The IDF, in turn, states that Blut continues to perform his duties and his replacement is not planned in the near future.

Until the parties agree on an official personnel procedure, the minister’s statement on television remains a political declaration, not a completed appointment.

Kyiv collective “Bow Nashir” continues to amaze: Ukrainian students perform songs in Yiddish and Hebrew, creating a unique cultural bridge between Ukraine and Israel.

But what is behind this project? Why do students, many of whom are not Jewish, choose such an unusual musical path?

I told this story Eduard Doks, from Kyiv, specially for Vesti

The Sholom Aleichem Museum in Kyiv became a place where famous Jewish songs were heard. Students Department of Vocals, Kyiv University named after Boris Grinchenko presented a program including compositions in Yiddish and Hebrew.

One of the most memorable performances was Roman Stukalo’s performance of the famous Israeli song “Shema, Yisrael”. It was followed by Yiddish songs such as “Afn veg shteit a boym” And “Oifn prypichek brent a firel”performed by students David Zagorulko and Anastasia Troshchinskaya.

David’s older sister, Dasha Zagorulko, and Anastasia Grishchenko supplemented the program with Israeli hits such as “Tzel etz tamar le oh yareah” And “Yerushalayim shel zaav”.

---

History of the group “Bow Nashir”

The Bow Nashir team was created in 2010 on the basis of the Beiteinu Jewish community center. Its artistic director is Svetlana Gmyrina, senior lecturer at Boris Grinchenko University of Kyiv.

Svetlana Viktorovna says:

“We select complex and beautiful compositions that require serious vocal training. This is excellent practice for students, and an opportunity for listeners to get in touch with the Jewish musical tradition.”

A special feature of the project is that most of its participants do not have Jewish roots. However, some students learn about their origins through participation in the group.

---

Why is this important for cultural connections?

The performance of songs in Yiddish and Hebrew in Ukraine symbolizes not only the preservation of Jewish culture, but also the strengthening of ties between Ukraine and Israel.

According to research, before the Holocaust, about 3 million Yiddish speakers lived in Ukraine. Today in Ukraine the language Yiddish is taught at the academic level at the Kiev-Mohyla Academybut its use in everyday life is extremely rare.

---

Table: Contribution of “Bow Nashir” to the development of culture

Indicator	Description
Base	2010 at the Beiteinu base
Supervisor	Svetlana Gmyrina
Repertoire	Songs in Yiddish and Hebrew
Participants	Students of Grinchenko University
Performances	Holidays, concerts at the Sholom Aleichem Museum

---

Reviews and prospects

Director of the Sholom Aleichem Museum Irina Klimova highly appreciates the performances of the group:

“Bow Nashir concerts are always an event. Young performers sing with such soul that you want to listen to them again and again.”

However, according to Svetlana Gmyrina, the band has not yet had the opportunity to perform outside of Ukraine or record studio albums.

---

Jewish culture in Ukraine: revival through music

Today “Bow Nashir” is more than just a musical group. This is a symbol of how young Ukrainians, through Jewish music, find new cultural connections and restore historical memory.

As noted NAnews – Israel Newssuch projects help strengthen relations between our peoples and help to better understand each other.

Read more about similar initiatives on the website NAnews and stay tuned for news that connects hearts.

…

Read on WhatsApp — channel NAnews ↓ — Israel News

Read on Telegram – channel NAnews ↓ — Israel News

Jews from Ukraine, including from Galicia, played a significant role in the formation of modern Israel.

One of the iconic stories was the founding in 1920 of the first Zionist commune, Beitaniya Illit, associated with the Shomer HaTzair youth movement. This was not just an experiment, but a whole philosophy that formed the basis of many future kibbutzim.

Young Jews from Galicia, inspired by the ideas of returning to the Land of Israel, came here to build a new life. They were united by belonging to the Shomer HaTzair movement, based on the principles of collectivism, equality and labor.

The commune collapsed after 8 months of difficult trials, but gave birth to dozens of kibbutzim and leaders of Israel.

Commune Beitaniya Illit was located in the Lower Galilee, not far from the Kinneret, at the intersection of roads to Kibbutz Alumot.

In 1964, a memorial dedicated to the Shomer HaTzair movement and the 73 kibbutzim founded by members of this movement was opened here. that’s where it is on the map.

The tent-like monument was designed by architect Yechiel Arad. From the top of the memorial there is a panoramic view of the Jordan Valley, Kinneret, Golan Heights and Hermon.

It was here, in 1921, that an experiment that became a legend in the history of Zionism was completed.

He told me about him in detail Shimon Briman for the website (Ukrainian) “Ukrainian-Jewish Zustricha”.

---

How it all began: the idealism of young Galicians

In the spring of 1921, the experiment, which went down in history as the “Galician project,” was completed.

In the summer of 1920, the “Galician landing” of 131 people arrived in Galilee. These were young men and women, many of whom left Lvov and other cities of Western Ukraine. Their main goal was to create a new type of Jewish society.

---

Problems and challenges of the commune

The youth faced many difficulties. Life in Betaniya was full of challenges:

• Harsh living conditions: tents and temporary shelters did not protect from strong winds and winter cold.
• Lack of food: food was meager, and physical labor was exhausting.
• Conflicts in the group: participants discussed each other’s personal qualities, which often led to quarrels and tension.

Constant lack of resources, disease and internal conflicts eventually led to the collapse of the commune in the spring of 1921. However, its members became the founders of many kibbutzim in Israel.

---

Leaders of the “Galician wave” and their contribution

Name	City of origin	Contribution to Israel
Dov Opper	Zolochev	Organizer of “Shomer Ha-Tza’ir”, died in 1920.
Arie Alweil	Bibrka	Artist, founder of the heroic style in art.
Meir Wald (Yaari)	Przemysl	Leader of the Shomer HaTzair movement, member of the Knesset.
Benjamin Freivogel	Stanislavov (Ivano-Frankivsk)	Founder of Kibbutz Beit Alfa, trade union leader.
David Horowitz	Drohobych	First director of the Ministry of Finance, head of the Bank of Israel.
Aba Khushi	Turk	Mayor of Haifa, leader of the Land of Israel Workers’ Party.
Shmuel Golan	Pidvolochisk	Founder of the Israeli school of psychoanalysis.

---

How it all ended

Beitaniya, the first commune of the world’s first Zionist youth movement, Shomer HaTza’ir, disintegrated after eight months of difficult trials, but gave birth to dozens of kibbutzim and leaders in Israel. Almost all the leaders and participants in this experiment were Jews from the cities and towns of Galicia.

It was from this region of modern Ukraine that at the end of July 1920, an organized “landing party” arrived in the Land of Israel – 131 people, familiar from the meeting in the Shomer Ha-Tzair groups, all 18-20 years old. Most are boys, the rest are girls.

They left their parents and abundance to return from the diaspora to their land. They left the comfort of the city for hard work. They were inspired by the idea of ​​​​creating a New Man – a free Jew in their ancient homeland.

After the collapse of Beitaniya Illit, its members descended into the valleys of Galilee and became the founders of many kibbutzim. Despite the difficulties, the experiment was not in vain – it laid the foundation for future Zionist settlements.

The kibbutzim created by these idealists became not only economic, but also cultural centers of young Israel. Their ideas of collectivism and work inspired new generations of Zionists.

---

Historical heritage

Betaniya-Illit remains a symbol of courage, self-sacrifice and faith in ideals. Today, when we talk about the relationship between Ukraine and Israel, it is important to remember how Jews from Galicia contributed to the building of the modern Jewish state.

Our website NANews – Israel News emphasizes that the story of Betaniya is an example of how courage and the desire for freedom can change the future of an entire people.

More in the section “Jews from Ukraine”.

…

Read on WhatsApp – channel NAnews ↓ — Israel News

Read on Telegram – channel NAnews ↓ — Israel News

American conservative blogger and great friend of Israel, Laura Loomer, showcased the Ukrainian P1-SUN interceptor drone, designed to destroy Russian Shahed drones, to her audience of over 2,000,000. During her visit to the SkyFall facility, she signed two such devices, leaving a message for Iran on one of them.

The post appeared on July 31, 2026. In it, Loomer linked Russia’s war against Ukraine with Iran’s actions in the Middle East, discussed Russian intelligence assistance to Tehran, and separately explained the unusual unofficial nickname of the Ukrainian interceptor.

Laura Loomer: many do not understand the connection between Russia and Iran

Loomer began her post by reminding about the origin of the weapons Russia uses against Ukraine:

“A lot of people don’t know this, but many of the missiles and the drones that Russia uses to attack and kill Ukrainians come from Iran… especially the Shahed drones.”

Translation:

“Many people don’t know this, but a significant portion of the missiles and drones that Russia uses to attack and kill Ukrainians come from Iran… especially the Shahed drones.”

The main part of this statement concerns the Shahed. These strike drones were developed in Iran. Subsequently, Russia not only received ready-made devices but also organized its own mass production of modified versions, which it calls ‘Geran’.

The Russian armed forces launch thousands of such drones at Ukraine every month. Initially, the Shahed were relatively slow devices with a propeller engine, but Russia is gradually adding new communication systems, guidance, and jet engines. The speed of some new variants can reach about 500 kilometers per hour, significantly complicating their interception.

Loomer’s wording about missiles requires separate clarification. In 2024, the US announced the transfer of short-range ballistic missiles Fath-360 from Iran to Russia. In 2025, reports emerged about the preparation of deliveries of corresponding launchers. However, information about the mass use of specifically Iranian missiles against Ukraine remains less certain than the evidence of Shahed usage.

Russia helps Iran find American targets

Loomer further wrote:

“Those are the same drones Iran is using to murder US soldiers with assistance from Russia, as Russia is providing Iran with satellite imagery to target and murder Americans in the Middle East.”

Translation:

“These are the same drones that Iran uses to kill American servicemen with the assistance of Russia, as Russia provides Iran with satellite images to find targets and kill Americans in the Middle East.”

The statement is formulated extremely harshly, but it is based on published information about Russian-Iranian intelligence cooperation.

In March 2026, Reuters, citing sources, reported that Russia was providing Iran with information about the location of American ships and aircraft in the Middle East. In April, the agency published data from Ukrainian intelligence, according to which Russian satellites were photographing military bases, infrastructure facilities, and other potential targets in the region, and the obtained information was transmitted to Tehran. Western and regional sources also noted an increase in Russian satellite activity.

However, it cannot yet be claimed that the specific death of each American serviceman is directly related to a Russian satellite image. Public materials confirm the transfer of intelligence information and technologies but do not allow for the reconstruction of the full chain of preparation for each individual Iranian strike.

‘This one is for you, Iran’

Loomer said that during her visit to the SkyFall production, she was given the opportunity to sign two devices:

“When I was inside the @SkyfallUA drone facility, I signed two of the P1-SUN drone interceptors.”

Translation: “When I was at the SkyFall facility, I signed two P1-SUN drone interceptors.”

On one of them, she wrote:

“On one of them, I wrote, ‘this one is for you Iran.’”

Translation: “On one of them, I wrote: ‘This one is for you, Iran.’”

The blogger did not reveal to whom the second message was addressed:

“I won’t say just yet who I signed the other one for.”

Translation: “I won’t say yet who I signed the second one for.”

There is no confirmation that the device signed by Loomer is going to be sent directly to the Middle East. Most likely, it is a symbolic gesture: the Ukrainian P1-SUN was created to destroy drones of Iranian origin, which Russia uses to attack Ukrainian cities.

But this gesture also has practical significance. After the start of large-scale attacks by Iran on American forces and US allies, Middle Eastern countries showed great interest in Ukrainian counter-drone measures. According to Reuters, Ukraine discussed possible deliveries of interceptors to the United States and Qatar, and Ukrainian manufacturers declared their readiness to export part of the production without compromising their own defense.

What the P1-SUN represents

P1-SUN is a Ukrainian interceptor drone by SkyFall. Its task is to detect an aerial target, catch up with it, and destroy it during flight.

It is not a replacement for Patriot, Arrow, or David’s Sling systems. P1-SUN is primarily intended to combat drones, against which launching an expensive anti-aircraft missile may be economically disadvantageous.

In July 2026, SkyFall presented the new P1-SUN Jetkiller modification at the Farnborough Airshow. It was created to combat faster jet versions of Russian Shahed.

According to the manufacturer, by July 21, the basic P1-SUN had destroyed over 5,500 Russian Shahed. Reuters emphasizes that it is impossible to independently verify all this statistics. The company also claims that the P1-SUN Jetkiller has already passed combat tests and destroyed more than ten jet targets. The start of mass production of the new version was planned for August 2026.

Why such an interceptor is more advantageous than an anti-aircraft missile

The cost of P1-SUN for Ukrainian forces is about a thousand dollars, depending on the configuration. For comparison, one Shahed-136 can cost from 50 to 100 thousand dollars, and a PAC-3 missile for Patriot is about 4 million dollars.

This does not mean that one type of weapon can simply replace another. Patriot is primarily intended for intercepting ballistic and aerodynamic targets, which a small drone cannot handle. However, using a multi-million-dollar missile against a relatively cheap drone creates an extremely unfavorable cost ratio of attack and defense.

P1-SUN is supposed to cover a cheaper level of air defense. Interceptors can operate together with aviation, mobile fire groups, electronic warfare means, and classic anti-aircraft systems.

According to Ukrainian military data, in February 2026, interceptor drones provided about 70% of drone destructions in the Kyiv area. SkyFall also created its own academy, where training a new operator takes about three weeks.

What the expression “Penis drone” means

The most unusual part of Loomer’s post concerns the unofficial nickname of the device:

“In Ukraine, the P1-SUN has been nicknamed the ‘Penis drone’, because when it lands, it ‘Fks’ whoever it touches.”**

Translation: “In Ukraine, the P1-SUN is nicknamed ‘Penis drone’ because when it lands, it ‘has’ whoever it touches.”

It is important to understand: “Penis drone” is not an official name and not a technical term of SkyFall. The official designation of the device is P1-SUN.

The joke arose because the name P1-SUN, when read quickly, resembles a Ukrainian colloquial word denoting the male genital organ. An additional reason for jokes was the elongated shape of the device.

Loomer added her own crude explanation to the wordplay: supposedly, the device is called that because of what happens after its collision with the target. Technically, the expression ‘when it lands’ is also not quite accurate. P1-SUN is not supposed to calmly land on an enemy drone — it approaches the aerial target and destroys it.

Therefore, in the material, it is correct to use only the official English designation P1-SUN, and the expression “Penis drone” should be cited exclusively as Loomer’s quote and an explanation of the military meme.

Harsh address to Iran and Putin

Loomer concluded the publication with another emotional statement:

“Get FKD Iran! Get FKD Putin! Get FKD Communists and Jihadists! Get FKD Woke Reich!”

Translation with preserved meaning:

“Get FKD Iran! Get FKD Putin! Get FKD Communists and Jihadists! Get FKD ‘Woke Reich’!”

The abbreviation FKD is used instead of a crude English expletive. The last expression — “Woke Reich” — refers to Loomer’s internal American political rhetoric and is not directly related to the characteristics of P1-SUN.

The publication is not written in a diplomatic or military style. It is an emotional political post aimed primarily at an American conservative audience.

Why Loomer’s change of position was noticeable

Laura Loomer does not hold an official position in the US administration, but she is considered an influential supporter of Donald Trump and has a significant audience among MAGA movement supporters.

Previously, she sharply criticized Ukraine and spread claims that coincided with Russian propaganda. After her trip to Ukraine, Loomer publicly stated that she had been misled by materials she read on social media and Telegram.

In an interview with the Associated Press, she admitted that she previously believed Russian statements about the alleged existence of a Nazi state in Ukraine. According to her, personal acquaintance with the country, communication with people, and being present during Russian attacks changed her position.

On July 23, 2026, the First Deputy Head of the Office of the President of Ukraine, Serhiy Kyslytsia, met with Loomer. Together they visited the Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra and the Assumption Cathedral, damaged by a Russian drone. Volodymyr Zelensky also confirmed a personal conversation with her and noted the significance of American audience representatives seeing the consequences of Russian strikes with their own eyes.

For Ukraine, such a turnaround is important precisely because of Loomer’s audience. She addresses Americans who are skeptical about military aid to Kyiv and offers them another argument: Ukrainian technologies can already protect not only Ukraine but also American forces from Iranian weapons.

Why the P1-SUN story is important for Israel

For Israel, Russian-Iranian military cooperation is not an abstract problem. Iranian Shahed technology, improved by Russia in the context of a major war, can return to the Middle East in an updated form.

Russia receives Iranian developments, tests them against Ukrainian air defense, changes designs and methods of application. At the same time, according to published intelligence assessments, Moscow helps Iran with satellite images, cyber capabilities, and drone technologies.

Ukraine, in turn, has accumulated unique experience in repelling massive Shahed attacks. This is not only about individual interceptions but also about creating detection systems, training operators, distributing targets, and organizing mass production of cheap defense means.

NAnews — News of Israel notes: P1-SUN cannot replace Israeli air defense systems but can become an additional layer of protection. This is especially important during massive attacks when the enemy tries to overload the defense with a large number of cheap targets and force Israel to expend expensive missiles.

The signature on the P1-SUN became a political message

There is no reliable information about the further fate of the two devices signed by Laura Loomer. It is unknown whether they have already been transferred to specific units and participated in combat sorties.

But the meaning of the inscription “This one is for you Iran” is clear even without this. Ukraine shows that the weapon created to protect against Russian attacks can be in demand by all countries threatened by Iran and its associated forces.

Behind the crude joke about “Penis drone” lies a serious technological and strategic story. Russia and Iran exchange weapons, intelligence capabilities, and combat experience. Ukraine responds by creating mass and relatively cheap interceptors. And Laura Loomer tries to convey to her audience that the security of Ukraine, the US, and Israel is significantly more interconnected today than many Americans are used to thinking.

As NAnews — News of Israel emphasizes, Ukraine in this story is no longer just a recipient of foreign aid. It becomes a source of technologies and experience that can save the lives of American servicemen, Israelis, and residents of other Middle Eastern countries.

Jewish American actor, director, and screenwriter Jesse Eisenberg, known for films such as “The Social Network,” “Now You See Me,” “Zombieland,” and “Real Pain,” has arrived in Ukraine as a volunteer for an international humanitarian mission.

As of August 1, 2026, Eisenberg is in the Lviv region, where a program of psychological and creative support for children and adolescents affected by the consequences of the full-scale Russian aggression is being implemented.

The actor did not arrive for the filming of a new feature film, a premiere, or an official ceremony. He joined the project The Campfire Project, which the American organization conducts in collaboration with the Polish-Ukrainian humanitarian organization Folkowisko. The main work takes place in the village of Nahachev in the Lviv region, near the border with Poland.

The project began preparations long before the actor’s arrival.

The official story of the current mission did not begin in the last days of July.

On July 1, 2026, the organization Razom for Ukraine introduced the participants of its I’mMortal Fellowship program. Among the selected projects was the initiative Gathering Around the Fire: Arts, Healing, and Resilience.

The partners of the project were named as The Campfire Project from New York and Folkowisko Ukraine from Nahachev in the Lviv region. The program was initially designed for local children and families, as well as for people forced to leave other regions of Ukraine. It included theater, music, dance, visual arts, and psychological support methods that take into account the traumatic experience of war.

Simultaneously, the organizers planned training for Ukrainian teachers, psychologists, social workers, and representatives of humanitarian organizations. They are to be provided with methods that can be used after the American team’s visit.

In preparing this part of the program, materials from the World Health Organization and the Jameel Arts and Health Lab were taken into account. Thus, it is not about a one-time performance by celebrities in front of children, but an attempt to create a system that can continue to work with the efforts of Ukrainian specialists.

On July 5, Jesse Eisenberg first spoke about the upcoming trip.

Jesse Eisenberg publicly announced his intention to go to Ukraine on July 5, 2026 at the Karlovy Vary International Film Festival in the Czech Republic.

The actor said that he is organizing the trip together with his family. His wife Anna Strout works in the New York public school system and teaches art. According to Eisenberg, she was supposed to work directly with the children.

The couple learned about the program through American actress Jessica Hecht, one of the founders of The Campfire Project. Eisenberg then explained the distribution of roles very simply: his wife would teach, their son would communicate and play with the children, and he himself would film what was happening on his phone and document the camp’s work.

The actor emphasized that his family lives in comfortable conditions and believes it is right to use any real opportunity to help others. At the same time, Eisenberg did not exaggerate the significance of his participation and separately noted that volunteers cannot stop the war but can come and support the children.

This clarification is important: Jesse Eisenberg is not a professional psychologist or art therapist. He joined the mission as a volunteer, a member of the creative team, and a person documenting the project. Polish organizers also reported that he would participate in art classes and help the team develop methods for working with children who have experienced war trauma.

On July 27, the actor appeared in Polish Gorajec.

The next confirmed stage of the trip relates to July 27, 2026.

On this day, Polish Radio Rzeszów reported that Jesse Eisenberg arrived in the village of Gorajec in southeastern Poland. There is the base of the organization Folkowisko, which is involved in preparing the humanitarian mission.

Before crossing the Ukrainian border, the actor spent several days in Gorajec. He got acquainted with the work of Folkowisko, met with local residents, visited a historic wooden church, and attended a vintage car rally. The Polish publication was updated on July 30 when additional information about his further trip appeared.

Gorajec in this story turned out not to be a tourist stop. It was here that Eisenberg met the people and organization that, after the start of the full-scale war, created humanitarian, educational, and cultural programs on both sides of the Polish-Ukrainian border.

On July 29, it became known that the actor would work with children.

On July 29, 2026, the Polish Tygodnik Zamojski published details of the mission.

The publication reported that Eisenberg became a volunteer for the joint humanitarian and educational project of Folkowisko and The Campfire Project. In the following days, he was supposed to work with children growing up under Russian attacks, air raids, and a constant sense of danger.

President of Stowarzyszenie Folkowisko Marcin Piotrowski stated that the actor’s participation is an important gesture because children need people willing to give them their time, energy, knowledge, and attention.

On July 31, it was confirmed that Eisenberg was already in Ukraine.

On July 31, 2026, Ukrainian media and representatives of The Campfire Project confirmed that Jesse Eisenberg arrived in the Lviv region.

In the evening of July 31, TVP World also reported on the trip, calling it a joint Polish-American humanitarian initiative for Ukrainian children. The TVP publication appeared after several days of Eisenberg’s stay in Polish Gorajec and his subsequent move to the Lviv region.

What is happening in Nahachev.

The first main stage of the mission is called Therapeutic Arts Camp.

It is designed for one week. An international team of 12 artists, creative therapy specialists, and mental health professionals arrived in Nahachev. Jesse Eisenberg, his wife Anna Strout, and their son joined the program.

Children participate in theater workshops, dance and movement classes, draw, engage in visual arts, and receive individual psychological consultations.

The main task is not just to entertain the participants. Through creative work, children are helped to safely express fear, anxiety, anger, and other feelings that arose due to the war, forced relocation, loss of home, or prolonged life under the threat of Russian attacks.

Eisenberg himself explained the meaning of the project as follows: art should help people who were forced to leave their homes or are trying to cope with the consequences of the war to free and express their emotional life.

How many children are participating.

In reports published after the start of the camp, different numbers were mentioned.

On July 31, The Gaze reported on more than 70 children and adolescents. UA.NEWS indicated that 70 children are participating in the program. In later reports from Ukrainian media, it was already mentioned more than 80 participants.

Most likely, the number of children increased during the organization of the camp. The final consolidated figure has not yet been published by The Campfire Project, so it is more accurate to say that the program covered at least 70 children and adolescents, and according to some data, more than 80.

Among them are both residents of the Lviv region and families who relocated from other parts of Ukraine due to hostilities and Russian occupation.

After the camp, training for Ukrainian specialists will take place.

The mission does not end with the week-long camp.

Its second stage provides for a separate intensive seminar for Ukrainian teachers, psychologists, social workers, artists, and humanitarian organization employees.

Participants are to be taught methods of using theater, music, dance, and visual arts when working with trauma. The goal is that after the departure of American volunteers, help for children does not stop.

According to the organizers, the entire Polish-American-Ukrainian trip is designed for about two weeks: the first part is dedicated to direct work with children, the second to the training of local specialists.

This part makes the initiative particularly significant. The international team is not just conducting a temporary event but is leaving Ukrainian specialists with tools for further independent work.

The mission takes place against the backdrop of ongoing Russian attacks.

The program began at a time when Russian strikes on Ukraine did not cease.

On the night of July 30, 2026, when mission participants were already in the border region, Russian troops carried out one of the largest combined strikes on Ukraine. Russia used more than 70 missiles and over 280 strike drones.

Kyiv and the Kyiv region, as well as the Dnipropetrovsk, Lviv, Poltava, Kharkiv, Mykolaiv, Sumy, Vinnytsia, Cherkasy, and Ivano-Frankivsk regions were under attack and threat.

Thus, the conversation about children’s war trauma for camp participants is not an abstract theory. Air raids, missiles, and strike drones remain part of the daily life of Ukrainian families.

Who created The Campfire Project.

The Campfire Project was established in 2017, during the Syrian migration crisis.

The organization was created by American actress Jessica Hecht and producer Jenny Gersten. They began using theater, music, dance, and other creative practices to support refugees and displaced people.

Subsequently, The Campfire Project conducted missions in Greece, Moldova, and Uganda, and in July 2024 launched a program for migrants in New York. The development of activities is carried out by psychologists, creative therapy specialists, and artists.

The current mission in Ukraine continues this work but takes into account Ukrainian culture and the specific experience of children living during the full-scale Russian war.

For NAnews — News of Israel, it is fundamentally important to note: this is not a promotional trip of a star, but a project that was prepared in advance and unites international specialists with Ukrainian organizations.

Why Ukraine has personal significance for Eisenberg.

Jesse Eisenberg was born on October 5, 1983 in New York in a Jewish family. His ancestors came from Eastern Europe, primarily from Poland and territories that are now part of Ukraine.

During the trip, Eisenberg said that part of his family survived World War II in Lviv. According to him, relatives were saved by people living near the place where the humanitarian mission is now taking place. Therefore, the trip to this region became not only a volunteer but also a deeply personal journey for him.

The actor’s relationship with his family’s history is especially vividly manifested in the film “Real Pain”, released in 2024.

Eisenberg wrote the script, directed, and played one of the main roles. The film tells the story of two American Jewish cousins who travel to Poland to reconnect with their family’s history and honor the memory of relatives who survived the Holocaust.

The basis of the film was real family memories of Eisenberg and his trip to Poland in 2008, when he visited the house that belonged to his relatives until 1939.

On March 4, 2025, Eisenberg received Polish citizenship.

Another important date was March 4, 2025.

On this day, Polish President Andrzej Duda officially handed Jesse Eisenberg documents granting Polish citizenship during a ceremony in New York.

The presidential office noted that the actor was born into a Jewish family, and his ancestors came from Poland, including Krasnystaw. Eisenberg himself linked obtaining citizenship with the desire to restore his family’s historical connection with Poland and contribute to improving relations between Jews and Poles.

The current trip to Ukraine became the next stage of this return to Eastern Europe — not only for exploring family history but also for helping people experiencing a new war.

Eisenberg’s connection with Israel.

Jesse Eisenberg is connected to Israel through his Jewish heritage, family history, and creative activities.

A particularly important event was his first visit to Israel in July 2014. At that time, Israeli cities were under rocket attacks, and many foreign performers and artists canceled planned visits.

Eisenberg did not cancel his trip.

On July 24, 2014, he appeared at the Tel Aviv theater “Beit Lessin”, where the premiere of his play “The Revisionist” in Hebrew took place. After the performance, the actor participated in a meeting with the audience. The play was written by him in 2013 and is dedicated to the meeting of a young American with an elderly relative who survived the Holocaust.

The visit took place shortly before the temporary ban by the US Federal Aviation Administration on flights to Israel. Despite the situation, Eisenberg stated that he had no doubts about the decision to come.

He called Israel a “wonderful country” and said that he had a very good week there. The actor’s words were met with applause by the Israeli audience.

During that trip, Eisenberg visited Jerusalem, Haifa, and Acre. He also said that he would like to see southern Israel during his next visit.

This story shows that his connection with Israel is not limited to a formal mention of Jewish heritage. In a difficult period for the country, Eisenberg personally came to support the Israeli theater and the presentation of his play in Hebrew.

From family memory to helping children.

In Jesse Eisenberg’s biography, several historical and human lines are intertwined.

His ancestors were Jews from Eastern Europe. A significant part of the family faced the Holocaust. The actor himself restores the connection with Poland, addresses Jewish memory in his work, visited Israel during rocket attacks, and now works with children growing up under the threat of Russian missiles and drones.

The current mission cannot return destroyed homes or lost loved ones to children. But it can provide them with a safe space, adult attention, and the opportunity to express feelings for which it is difficult to find words.

For NAnews — News of Israel, this trip is important in this context. Jewish memory in the case of Jesse Eisenberg becomes not only an appeal to the tragedies of the past but also a basis for concrete help to those experiencing war today.

On the Golan Heights, about 16 km from the Sea of Galilee (Kinneret), there is a place that initially disappoints in person — and then suddenly overwhelms. Gilgal Refaim (גלגל רפאים) is translated in various ways: Wheel of Ghosts, Circle of Spirits, sometimes even Ring of Giants. And yes, it is called the Israeli Stonehenge — not because it “sounds nice,” but because the resemblance in idea and mystery is indeed persistent.

Especially in spring, when the Golan is green, the air is wet from the grass, and the first flowers emerge where there was mud yesterday, this structure seems not just ancient — it seems stubbornly alive. Massive. Too calm for something that is about five thousand years old.

And yet, getting there is not always easy: the road requires a decent car and a willingness to walk.

Here is a link to Google Maps – https://maps.app.goo.gl/sYoit28RBqSTPTaL9

Stones that look like “just a pile” from the ground

Gilgal Refaim consists of approximately 42,000 basalt boulders, with a total weight estimated at up to 40,000 tons. At eye level, it often looks like a chaotic heap of stones — without an “entrance,” without a beautiful composition, without a convenient sign saying “look here.”

But all the magic is that the structure is only readable from above.

There are five concentric circles, and the largest of them is about 156 meters in diameter. And this is one of those rare cases where the phrase “seen from above” is not a journalistic metaphor: in the modern era, the object was indeed recognized and described thanks to aerial surveys.

There is another detail that catches the eye: unlike the British Stonehenge, there are no hewn vertical pillars here. The Israeli version is made of unprocessed stones, piled on top of each other. As if it was important for the builders not to “show technique,” but to create mass. Perimeter. Boundary.

What the “Wheel” looks like and why it deceives from the ground

From the ground, Rujm el-Hiri often looks like a disorderly stone scatter. But from above, the main thing is visible: a system of concentric circles converging towards the center, where a tumulus is located.

Facts in numbers (according to the most common descriptions):

• More than 42,000 basalt boulders

• The outer circle is about 150–160 m in diameter

• The total weight of the complex is estimated at approximately 37,500–40,000 tons

• The dating is usually attributed to the turn of the 4th–3rd millennia BC (early Bronze Age), but ranges in sources may vary

When “it was discovered” and who took it on

Sometimes it is written that the object was “discovered from the air.” It is more correct to say this: after 1967, the monument was systematically recorded and described during surveys of the area, and then it became the subject of regular research, including excavations and mapping.

In recent years, geophysics and remote analysis of the terrain and structure have been added to the study.

Observatory, calendar, or… why was it built at all?

Scientists still do not have a single answer as to why this was built. There are many versions, and each sounds like a separate genre — from strict archaeology to biblical legend.

The most common explanations usually look like this:

Observatory. For a long time, it was believed that the openings and directions in the walls were related to the points of sunrise on the days of the summer and winter solstices. The version is beautiful, logical, almost “textbook.” But it has a weak point: recent studies, taking into account soil shifts and changes in the orientation of the structure over time, make this hypothesis more cautious.

Cult of the dead. In the center is a tumulus with a burial chamber. And here is an important nuance that makes the story even stranger: it is often indicated that the tumulus could have appeared about a thousand years later than the circles themselves. That is, the “heart” of the complex could have been added later — meaning the monument’s purpose could have changed.

Sky burial. This is a term for the practice where the deceased was left in an open place, and the flesh was eaten by birds — primarily vultures. This form of burial is known in the region in earlier periods. The version sounds harsh, even unpleasant — but that’s why it sometimes seems plausible: the ancient world did not have to be “beautiful.”

Gathering place for tribes. Perhaps it was a ritual center for nomadic peoples — a meeting point, negotiations, rituals, status demonstration. Stone as a “contract” that cannot be taken away.

Calendar. A similar idea: the place could serve as a primitive calendar and mark key points of the annual cycle — primarily solstices. This does not necessarily contradict the ritual version: in ancient societies, the calendar and cult were often the same.

Connection with giants. The Golan is a territory that biblical tradition associates with giants. Therefore, a tempting legend arises: supposedly, giants built it for giants, “tomb of giants,” and some even say “grave of Goliath.” This is no longer science, but mythology — but mythology that clings to the stones as tightly as moss.

Between spirits and Golgotha: why the name sounds so strong

The name Gilgal Refaim is not just “beautiful words.” It is itself like a hint that does not fully explain anything.

Gilgal (גִּלְגָּל) — circle, wheel. The root is associated with the idea of rolling, rotating, folding. In biblical language, “gilgal” is also a place where stones were set in a circle as a sign of memory. And yes, from a close root comes the word gulgoleth (גולגולת) — “skull,” from which the well-known word “Golgotha” grew. It is not a fact that this is a direct semantic bridge, but the feeling of “stones as memory” arises almost automatically here.

Refaim (רְפָאִים) — a complex word: both giants and spirits. In biblical texts, the Rephaim are an ancient people of giants who lived, among other places, on the Golan; in later poetry and tradition, they are already “shadows of the dead,” inhabitants of the underworld.

Therefore, there are so many translations: this name simultaneously holds two worlds — the physical and the “invisible.”

Why it’s important not to fall into “monographs about giant-occupiers”

Such places always attract not only archaeologists and historians. They are loved by writers, directors, esoteric enthusiasts — and, unfortunately, those who build pseudo-historical theories under a political slogan.

Gilgal Refaim sometimes appears in texts where authors confidently prove that “giants lived here in ancient times” and then draw conclusions not about archaeology, but about modernity. And here it is useful to at least understand the basics: what exactly is this object, what time is it from, how is it structured, why are there so many versions around it.

Because, no matter how you look at it, this stone structure is interesting in itself without any “additional tales.” Simply because it stands on the Golan — and is silent. And we are still trying to understand what exactly ancient people wanted to fix in basalt: calendar, memory, fear, power… or something for which we do not yet have words.

Chernikhovsky was born in Mikhailovka (Taurida Governorate), now the urban-type settlement of Mikhailovka in Zaporizhzhia Oblast. On August 20, 2020, a commemorative plaque for Chernikhovsky was unveiled on the building of the Mikhailovka Local History Museum (Zaporizhzhia Oblast, Ukraine). On March 1, 2022, Mikhailovka was occupied by Russian aggressors.

Do you know who adorns the 50-shekel bill? Yes, yes, it is him — Shaul Chernikhovsky, whose name is immortalized not only on banknotes but also on the streets of Israeli cities.

He is often called “second after Bialik” among Israeli poets. But isn’t that a compliment?

Shaul Gutmanovich Chernikhovsky was an outstanding Jewish poet, translator, and doctor, whose creations in Hebrew had a significant impact on Jewish culture.

Born in Mikhailovka (Zaporizhzhia, Ukraine), he knew several languages and began translating Pushkin’s works into Hebrew in his youth.

At the age of 15, he continued his education in Odessa. With the support of Yosef Klausner, he began publishing poems. He then went to Heidelberg and Lausanne, where he studied medicine. Upon returning from abroad, he worked as a doctor in Melitopol and in Kharkiv Governorate.

During the First World War, he was also a doctor in a hospital (Serafimovsky Lazaret in Minsk). He was awarded the Order of St. Stanislaus, third class, and the Order of St. Anna, third class.

After the war, he returned to Odessa and engaged in private medical practice. In 1922, he emigrated from Russia and settled in Berlin.

His poems and translations brought him wide recognition. He wrote poems in Hebrew (at that time, Hebrew was not yet fully restored as a spoken language and was often called the “ancient Hebrew language”). His poetry celebrates inner revival through Zionism, the liberation of the Jewish soul.

For modern Hebrew speakers, however, Chernikhovsky’s metrics are often difficult to perceive because the stresses in modern Hebrew differ from the language in which the poet wrote; the language itself has significantly changed, becoming a living means of communication.

In 1931, Chernikhovsky made a move that changed his life: he moved to Eretz-Israel. Here he not only contributed to medicine by compiling a dictionary of terms (Latin — Hebrew — English) but also continued to heal with words, working as a doctor in a school.

His pen was no less powerful than a scalpel, as he translated the epic poems “Iliad” and “Odyssey” into Hebrew, as well as “The Tale of Igor’s Campaign.” For translating the Finnish “Kalevala,” he was awarded the Knight’s Cross of the Order of the White Rose of Finland in 1934. From 1936, Chernikhovsky represented Hebrew literature in the international PEN club and was nominated for the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1935 and 1937. He twice became a laureate of the Bialik Prize for Literature.

Twice (in 1935 and 1937) he was nominated for the Nobel Prize in Literature.

He passed away in 1943 in Jerusalem, leaving behind a rich literary legacy.

Shaul Chernikhovsky is not just a name, it is a symbol. A symbol of love for his people, language, and culture. A symbol of tireless pursuit of knowledge and creativity.

 

American journalist Edgar Snow wrote back in January 1945 that Ukraine had “paid the bill” for the war. Today, this conversation is especially important for the Israeli audience: the price of Victory included not only Ukrainian fronts and destroyed cities but also the fates of many peoples who then inhabited Ukraine, including the Jews of Ukraine — victims of the Holocaust, soldiers, doctors, refugees, evacuees, and families whose memory was dissolved in Soviet statistics for decades.

The Price of War: How Ukraine Paid for Victory in World War II

Ukraine in World War II became a battlefield and a symbol of enormous sacrifices, the scale of which was long hushed up. Western journalists noted as early as 1945: the bill for the defeat of Nazism was paid primarily by the Ukrainian people.

This topic is important for the Israeli audience as well. Because Ukraine was not only a territory of the front, occupation, destroyed cities, and burned villages. It was home to many peoples — Ukrainians, Jews, Poles, Russians, Crimean Tatars, Roma, Belarusians, Greeks, Bulgarians, Hungarians, Romanians, and other communities.

The price of Victory included the fates of all these people.

But modern Russia tries to present the multinational Victory as almost exclusively “Russian.” Thus, foreign blood, foreign destroyed cities, foreign graves, and foreign memory are turned into tools of imperial propaganda.

This article does not claim to be a complete analysis of all the forces that operated on the territory of modern Ukraine during World War II. Here were the Red Army, Soviet partisans, German occupation administration, Wehrmacht and SS structures, Ukrainian nationalist underground, OUN and UPA, local auxiliary police, collaborationist formations, Polish underground, Jewish resistance, ghettos, partisan groups, underground fighters, rescuers of Jews, Soviet repressive organs, and post-war anti-Soviet resistance.

This complex history requires a separate conversation because it included both the fight against Nazism and the fight against Stalin’s USSR, collaboration, saving people, and crimes against the civilian population.

What is important here is this: Ukraine became one of the main territories where a huge price was paid for Victory, and modern Russia tries to appropriate this Victory along with foreign grief and foreign memory.

Voice from the West: Edgar Snow and the Ukrainian War Bill

In January 1945, American journalist Edgar Snow, returning from the USSR, published an article in The Saturday Evening Post titled “The Ukraine Pays the Bill.” It was not a book but a magazine report, published on January 27, 1945.

Snow was one of the first in the West to loudly voice the scale of Ukrainian losses: at least 10 million lives — soldiers and civilians, as well as material damage of 30–40 billion dollars.

These data were reported to him by Ukrainian officials, such as the Deputy Chairman of the Council of Ministers of the Ukrainian SSR for Agriculture Vasily Starchenko and the head of the State Planning Committee of the republic Vladimir Valuyev. They knew the real situation in the liberated territory and understood the scale of the destruction.

Snow noted an important difference: the territory of the RSFSR experienced German occupation only partially, whereas a significant part of Ukraine went through the front, occupation, looting, destruction, mass deaths, and demographic collapse. Soviet statistics, however, downplayed the tragedy.

In 1946, the magazine “Bolshevik” named the total losses of the USSR at 7 million people, concealing the disproportionate contribution of Ukraine. Even earlier, in May 1945, Joseph Stalin raised a toast to the “Russian people” as the “leading force” of the Soviet Union. Thus, the foundation of the myth that Snow effectively refuted was laid: the titanic struggle was not only “Russian glory” but to a large extent a Ukrainian war.

This does not mean that other peoples did not fight and die. They did. But the Ukrainian price of Victory was too high to be dissolved in someone else’s political formula.

Stalin’s Seizure of Western Ukraine and the Broken Map Before the War

An important context begins even before Germany’s attack on the USSR.

In 1939, after the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact and the joint division of Poland by Nazi Germany and Stalin’s USSR, the Soviet Union occupied the eastern territories of Poland, including Western Ukraine. Soviet propaganda called this “reunification,” but in essence, it was a Stalinist seizure and annexation of territories caught between two totalitarian regimes.

This sharply changed the map of Ukraine before the big war.

New lands, new cities, new communities, and new fates became part of the Ukrainian SSR. Together with Western Ukraine, Ukrainians, Poles, Jews, and other population groups who had previously lived in a different political system entered Soviet reality.

For people, this meant not only a change of flag. Sovietization came: arrests, deportations, nationalization of property, destruction of political and social structures, pressure on religious and cultural life. Part of the population experienced first Stalinist rule, then Nazi occupation, and then Soviet control again.

That is why, when we talk about the price of Ukraine in World War II, we cannot start only from 1941. For Western Ukraine, the catastrophe began earlier — with the division of Eastern Europe between Stalin and Hitler.

This is especially important for understanding Jewish statistics. Before the war, about 1.5 million Jews lived in Soviet Ukraine. After the inclusion of Western Ukrainian territories, Bukovina, and Bessarabia, the number of Jews in the expanded borders of Ukraine increased to about 2.4 million. That is, Stalin’s expansion of borders directly changed the demographic picture, which then came under the blow of the Nazi invasion.

The Scale of the Ukrainian Tragedy

Snow’s estimate of 10 million dead is close to modern Ukrainian memorial estimates: Ukraine’s losses in World War II are often called in the range of 8–10 million people. These losses include victims of battles, occupation, famine, repression, deportations, forced labor, diseases, the Holocaust, and the general destruction of life.

More cautious Western reference estimates may call 5–7 million dead. The difference is related to the methodology: whom exactly to count, in what borders, whether to consider natives of Ukraine who died outside the republic, prisoners of war, civilians, those who died from hunger and diseases, deported, victims of occupation and repression.

But the essence does not change: Ukraine was one of the main territories of human and material catastrophe of World War II.

If we take the estimate of 8–10 million dead and compare it with the modern estimate of the total losses of the USSR of about 26.6 million people, then Ukraine accounts for about 30–38% of this enormous tragedy.

This is not a secondary share.

This is almost a third or more of the entire Soviet price of the war.

The demographic blow was colossal — up to 14 million people. Estimates often indicate that the population of Ukraine decreased from about 41 million in 1941 to about 27 million by 1945. This is not only the dead. This also includes evacuees, mobilized, abducted, displaced, refugees, people who found themselves outside their former lives.

Material damage of 30–40 billion dollars by then calculations is not an abstract sum. These are destroyed cities, villages, factories, hospitals, schools, mines, bridges, railways, houses, farms, and entire regions.

Ukraine lost about 700 cities and towns, 28 thousand villages, a huge part of industry and agriculture. The Nazis plundered the country, exporting grain, equipment, livestock, raw materials, people, and even land.

And then came the famine of 1946–1947. Formally, the war was over, but for many families, death, poverty, and destruction continued even after Victory.

The economic losses of Ukraine amounted to about 42% of the damage inflicted on the entire USSR.

About 10 million people were left homeless or lived in destroyed premises.

Destroyed or seriously damaged were:

— about 18 thousand medical institutions;
— about 33 thousand educational institutions;
— about 16 thousand industrial enterprises.

Behind each such figure is not only state statistics. There are families, cities, villages, jobs, schools, hospitals, documents, cemeteries, memory, and life that had to be rebuilt anew.

Ukrainians and Other Peoples: Who Paid This Bill

The main “mistake” of Russian propaganda is turning the multinational price of war into a “Russian Victory.”

Ukraine in World War II was home to many peoples. Ukrainians, Jews, Poles, Russians, Crimean Tatars, Roma, Belarusians, Moldovans, Greeks, Bulgarians, Hungarians, Romanians, German colonists, and other communities lived on this land.

Each group experienced the war in its own way. But they all found themselves inside a huge catastrophe.

Ukrainians formed the basis of the population of the Ukrainian SSR and suffered huge losses at the front and in the rear. Millions of Ukrainians served in the Red Army, died in battles, were captured, returned disabled, lost families and homes.

The civilian population suffered from occupation, punitive operations, burned villages, forced labor, hunger, diseases, deportations, and repressions.

This was not only a military history. It was a history of the destruction of society.

When after the war the Soviet authorities spoke only of the “Soviet people,” Ukrainian specifics disappeared. And when modern Russia speaks of a “Russian Victory,” it makes an even cruder substitution: it takes for itself foreign blood, foreign cities, foreign graves, and foreign grief.

Jews of Ukraine: A Separate Tragedy Within the General Price of War

For the Israeli audience, it is important to highlight this part separately, but not to turn the entire history of Ukraine into only a Jewish theme. The Jewish tragedy is part of the large Ukrainian catastrophe, not a replacement for the entire topic.

The Jews of Ukraine were part of the population of the country through which the war passed. They lived in Kyiv, Odessa, Lviv, Kharkiv, Dnipro, Chernivtsi, Zhytomyr, Vinnytsia, Berdychiv, Uman, Medzhybizh, Kamianets-Podilskyi, Rivne, Lutsk, and many other cities and towns.

Before the war, this was a huge map of Jewish life in Eastern Europe: families, synagogues, schools, cemeteries, crafts, trade, Yiddish, Hebrew, Hasidic tradition, Zionist ideas, secular culture.

After the German invasion, Jews became the target of the Holocaust — a separate Nazi policy of extermination.

But it is important to write accurately: the Jews of Ukraine were not only victims of mass shootings. They also fought in the Red Army, served as doctors, engineers, signalmen, worked in the rear, went into evacuation, ended up in ghettos, experienced hunger, diseases, forced labor, deportations, Soviet repressions, and the destruction of life, like other residents of Ukraine.

At the same time, precisely as Jews, they were under the threat of complete extermination.

Ukraine became one of the main territories of the “Holocaust by bullets.” Jews were often killed near their homes — in ravines, forests, fields, quarries, near anti-tank ditches, on the outskirts of cities and towns.

Babi Yar became the most famous symbol of this tragedy. On September 29–30, 1941, 33,771 Jews were shot in Kyiv. But Babi Yar was not the only place. There were hundreds of places of mass extermination on Ukrainian soil.

According to modern estimates, about 1.5 million Jews of Ukraine and Jews who found themselves on Ukrainian territory during the war died as a result of the Holocaust and Nazi occupation policy — from mass shootings, ghetto conditions, hunger, diseases, forced labor, deportations, and the entire system of Nazi extermination.

This figure is important, but it cannot be understood narrowly. The Jewish price of war included not only killings in ravines. It included the front, the rear, evacuation, hunger, diseases, forced labor, loss of families, destruction of communities, and subsequent Soviet erasure of memory.

If we compare approximately 1.5 million Jewish victims with the overall Ukrainian estimate of 8–10 million dead, this is about 15–19% of the Ukrainian price of war. At the same time, Jews made up about 5–6% of the population of Ukraine in expanded borders.

This shows the disproportion of the Jewish tragedy within the overall Ukrainian catastrophe. But this does not cancel the general theme of the article: Ukraine as a country and space of many peoples paid a huge price for Victory.

Soviet Memory: Ukrainians Dissolved, Jews Depersonalized

After the war, the Soviet authorities created a convenient formula: “the Soviet people won.”

There was a part of the truth in it. The victory was indeed common. People of different nationalities fought and died. But this formula often erased specifics.

The Ukrainian sacrifice was dissolved in the general Soviet statistics.

The Jewish sacrifice was dissolved in the words “Soviet citizens.”

This is especially noticeable at places of mass killings. Where the Nazis exterminated Jews precisely as Jews, Soviet memorial texts often simply wrote about citizens, residents, or peaceful people.

Formally, these people were indeed citizens. But the reason for their extermination — Jewish origin — disappeared.

Thus, memory became convenient for the state but incomplete for people.

Ukrainians were deprived of a separate conversation about the price of Ukraine.

Jews were deprived of the exact name of their tragedy.

And then modern Russia turned this Soviet construction into an even more rigid substitution: “Soviet Victory” became “Russian Victory.”

Truth Against Propaganda

Edgar Snow challenged the Soviet myth of the “united people,” but his words were hushed up. Millions of Ukrainians fought in the Red Army on key fronts, died at the front, in captivity, in occupation, and in the rear, yet their contribution was often downplayed or dissolved in the general Soviet formula.

Only after the collapse of the USSR did historians begin to more widely restore the truth: Ukraine paid for Victory with an exorbitant price, becoming a victim of two regimes — Nazi and Stalinist.

Snow’s words that Ukraine “paid the bill” remain relevant today. They remind us of the price of freedom and how easily imperial propaganda appropriates foreign sacrifices.

Modern Russia exploits the memory of World War II as a political resource. It talks about 26.6–27 million dead citizens of the USSR but often presents this tragedy as if it were almost exclusively a Russian sacrifice and Russian feat.

This is a historical lie.

Soviet losses were multinational. Among these millions were Ukrainians, Jews, Belarusians, Russians, Kazakhs, Armenians, Georgians, Crimean Tatars, peoples of the Baltics, Caucasus, Central Asia, and others.

Ukraine gave a huge part of this price. The Jews of Ukraine experienced a separate tragedy of the Holocaust. Western Ukraine before the war went through Stalin’s seizure, Sovietization, repressions, and then Nazi occupation.

But Russian propaganda pretends that this entire history belongs to Moscow.

It appropriates veterans of different peoples.

Appropriates Ukrainian cities and villages.

Appropriates the destroyed economy of Ukraine.

Appropriates Babi Yar.

Appropriates the memory of Jews, whom the Soviet system often called nameless “peaceful citizens.”

Appropriates the very right to speak on behalf of Victory.

It sounds especially cynical today when Russia, under the guise of fighting Nazism, is waging war against Ukraine — a country that itself paid a huge price for the defeat of Nazi Germany.

Why This Is Important for Israel

For Israel, this topic is not a distant history.

Many Israeli families have roots in Ukrainian cities and towns. For them, Ukraine is not only a modern country that is once again experiencing war today. It is also a map of family memory: Kyiv, Odessa, Lviv, Chernivtsi, Berdychiv, Uman, Zhytomyr, Vinnytsia, Kharkiv, Dnipro, Medzhybizh.

NAnews — Israel News | Nikk.Agency considers this topic as a matter of honest memory. You cannot talk about the price of Victory and forget Ukraine. You cannot talk about World War II and turn a multinational tragedy into a “Russian Victory.” You cannot talk about the Holocaust on Ukrainian soil and again hide Jews behind the impersonal formula “peaceful citizens.”

The victory was common.

But the bill was not the same.

Ukraine paid with millions of lives, destroyed cities, annihilated villages, hunger, occupation, forced labor, repressions, and broken demography.

Among the many peoples who then inhabited Ukraine, Jews paid a special price: as part of the population of a country that went through the war, and as a people against whom the Nazis waged a policy of complete extermination.

That is why the modern Russian attempt to appropriate Victory is not just a dispute about the past. It is an attempt to take away from other peoples their dead, their pain, and their right to speak in their own name.

Because when Russia appropriates Victory, it appropriates not only military glory. It appropriates Ukrainian ruins, Jewish graves, the fates of the deported, shot, those who died of hunger, and those whose names were hidden for decades behind the words “Soviet citizens.”

Victory cannot be privatized.

Grief cannot be appropriated.

Memory cannot be given to those who use the dead to justify a new war.

Sources and reference points

• Edgar Snow, “The Ukraine Pays the Bill”, The Saturday Evening Post, January 27, 1945.
• Ukrainian Institute of National Memory — assessments of Ukraine’s losses in World War II.
• Britannica — reference data on the destruction and losses of Ukraine in World War II.
• Yad Vashem — materials on the Jewish population of Ukraine, the Holocaust, and Babi Yar.
• United States Holocaust Memorial Museum and National WWII Museum — materials on the Holocaust in Ukraine and the ‘Holocaust by bullets’.

On the morning of July 30, 2026, the residents of Ceuta saw thousands of people on the streets of their city, crossing the border from Morocco in several waves, bypassing barriers by sea, walking around breakwaters near Tarajal beach, or attempting to swim to the Spanish shore.

By the morning of July 31, the death toll had reached at least 18 people. Some drowned, others died in a stampede near a narrow coastal area. Spain sent the army and additional police units to the city, and Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez and Interior Minister Fernando Grande-Marlaska planned an urgent visit to Ceuta.

However, what is happening is not just another episode of the European migration crisis. Ceuta (here it is on the map – https://maps.app.goo.gl/hTUCguyf12fEjTrg9) is one of the most unusual territories in the world: a Spanish city located on the African continent, surrounded by Morocco and the Mediterranean Sea, but legally part of Spain.

That is why a person who crosses a few meters of the border line or bypasses a sea barrier finds themselves not just in a neighboring North African city. They find themselves on the territory of Spain and the European Union.

NANews — News of Israel examines what happened in Ceuta, why this small city has become one of the main migration points in Europe, and how its centuries-old history is connected to the current crisis.

Thousands of people crossed the sea and land border

According to Spanish state television TVE, between 2,000 and 3,000 people could have entered Ceuta on July 30. Most successful crossings occurred before noon, when border forces had not yet managed to block the main routes. Among the arrivals were predominantly young Moroccan citizens, but also people from sub-Saharan African countries, women, children, and entire families.

People moved in several ways. Some bypassed the border crossing via the breakwater near Tarajal, others entered the sea and swam along the coast, while others tried to break through gates and land barriers.

After the main approaches were blocked, thousands wishing to enter Ceuta remained in the Moroccan city of Fnideq. Some reached there on foot via mountain trails, trying to bypass police checkpoints. Moroccan security forces used water cannons and pushed people away from the border. During clashes, a bus and seven cars were set on fire.

Ceuta, with a population of about 85,000 people, is not physically prepared for the simultaneous arrival of several thousand migrants. Many minors and adults spent the night on the streets as there were not enough places in accommodation centers. Representatives of the Civil Guard called the situation a serious humanitarian crisis.

Spain deployed the military, but the city was not ‘captured’

Madrid sent 200 specially trained police officers and 60 military personnel to Ceuta. The army was supposed to help the Civil Guard restore control over the border, patrol the coast, and prevent new mass crossings.

Therefore, reports that migrants allegedly ‘captured Ceuta’ are an exaggeration. City authorities, police, the Civil Guard, and the Spanish army continued to work. However, for several hours, the border control system was indeed overloaded, and thousands of people managed to enter Spanish territory.

The Spanish Ministry of the Interior stated that human trafficking networks are using a recent court decision to spread rumors and encourage mass crossings. The ministry simultaneously emphasized cooperation with Morocco and reported that Moroccan forces prevented several thousand more attempts to cross the border. Madrid and Rabat agreed to strengthen coordination and expedite the return of people who illegally entered Ceuta.

The ultimate cause of such a sharp influx has not yet been established. It could be rumors of rule relaxation, actions of human traffickers, expectations of legalization in Spain, or a combination of several factors.

But the history of Ceuta shows: migration here has long been associated not only with poverty and the search for a better life but also with relations between Spain and Morocco.

Spanish city on the African shore

Ceuta is located at the entrance to the Strait of Gibraltar — where the Mediterranean Sea connects with the Atlantic Ocean, and Africa almost touches Europe.

Strictly speaking, Ceuta is more accurately called a Spanish exclave: it is separated from the main territory of Spain and has a land border only with Morocco. However, in the media, the city is often called an enclave.

Together with Melilla (here it is on the map – https://maps.app.goo.gl/JgRGu39w2unA9ANY7), Ceuta forms the only land border of the European Union on the African continent. This is what turns a few kilometers of the city border into one of the most sensitive lines of the entire European migration system.

But the Spanish presence here did not arise during the European division of Africa in the 19th century. It is significantly older than modern Morocco, the Spanish protectorate, and the current borders of the region.

From the Phoenicians to the Roman city of Septem

The exact date of Ceuta’s founding is unknown. Archaeological and historical tradition links the first trading settlements in this area with the Phoenicians, who were exploring the western Mediterranean in the first millennium BC.

Later, the city was in the sphere of Carthage, and after its defeat, it came under Roman rule. The Romans called the city Septem Fratres, meaning ‘Seven Brothers,’ after the seven hills surrounding the settlement.

Gradually, the name was shortened to Septem or Septa. In Arabic, it turned into Sabta — Sebta, and then in Portuguese and Spanish tradition, it became known as Ceuta.

Roman Ceuta was a port, fortress, and trading center. Goods passed through it between North Africa and the Iberian Peninsula. The city was also known for producing salted fish and fish sauces, supplied to various parts of the Roman Empire.

After the weakening of Rome, Ceuta came under the control of the Vandals, the Byzantine Empire, and possibly the Visigoths.

Seven centuries of a Muslim city

In the early 8th century, the city came under the control of Arab-Berber forces. Ceuta played an important role in the crossing of Muslim troops through the Strait of Gibraltar and the beginning of the conquest of the Iberian Peninsula in 711.

In the following centuries, various Muslim states and dynasties that ruled North Africa and Al-Andalus fought for Ceuta. The city was controlled or contested by the Idrisids, Umayyads of Cordoba, Almoravids, Almohads, Marinids, and other regional powers.

It was a wealthy trading port through which gold, fabrics, grain, livestock, and goods from the interior regions of Africa entered the Mediterranean.

However, a unified modern Moroccan state within its current borders did not exist at that time. Control over Ceuta repeatedly shifted between states on both sides of the strait.

1415: Ceuta was conquered by Portugal

On August 21, 1415, the Portuguese fleet of King John I approached Ceuta. Portuguese troops landed and captured the city.

This happened 77 years before the fall of Muslim Granada and the completion of the Reconquista on the Iberian Peninsula. After the conquest, Ceuta remained a Portuguese-speaking city for over two centuries.

Portugal hoped to gain control over the entrance to the Mediterranean Sea, African trade, and gold delivery routes. The conquest of Ceuta is also considered one of the first steps in Portuguese overseas expansion.

Economic expectations were only partially met. Trade routes began to bypass the Christian-occupied city, and maintaining the fortress and garrison required constant supplies from Europe. But the strategic importance of Ceuta compelled Portugal to hold onto it.

How Portuguese Ceuta became Spanish

In 1580, a dynastic crisis began in Portugal. The Portuguese crown was acquired by the Spanish King Philip II. Spain and Portugal retained separate laws and administrations but came under the rule of one monarch.

Ceuta formally remained a Portuguese possession, but its residents swore allegiance to the monarch ruling from Madrid.

In 1640, Portugal revolted against the Spanish Habsburg dynasty and restored independence. Most Portuguese territories recognized the new King John IV, but Ceuta refused to side with him and remained loyal to the Spanish King Philip IV.

In 1641, the city requested inclusion in the Castilian crown. Finally, the Treaty of Lisbon in 1668 ended the war between Spain and Portugal: Spain recognized Portugal’s independence, and Portugal recognized Spanish sovereignty over Ceuta.

Thus, Ceuta became Spanish not as a result of Spain’s conquest of Morocco in the 20th century. The city was first conquered by Portugal, then independently remained loyal to the Spanish crown, and the transition was secured by an international treaty.

Traces of the Portuguese period have been preserved to this day. Ceuta’s flag is based on the black-and-white flag of Lisbon, and the city’s coat of arms has Portuguese origins.

Why Ceuta was not handed over to Morocco in 1956

In 1912, France and Spain established a protectorate over Morocco. The Spanish zone covered part of northern Morocco, including the Rif region.

However, Ceuta and Melilla were not legally part of the protectorate. They were considered separate Spanish possessions and only bordered Spanish-controlled Moroccan lands. Official materials from the Spanish Ministry of Defense explicitly state that the cities and other Spanish territories were not part of the protectorate.

When Morocco gained independence in 1956, Spain handed over the northern zone of the protectorate but retained Ceuta and Melilla.

For Madrid, these were not colonies subject to decolonization but parts of Spanish territory that had been under Spanish control long before the creation of the protectorate. Researchers of the Spanish-Moroccan border call this distinction one of the main reasons why both cities remained Spanish after 1956.

Morocco does not agree with this interpretation. Rabat claims rights to Ceuta and Melilla from the moment of gaining independence and considers them occupied Moroccan territories.

Modern Ceuta and the sovereignty dispute

In 1995, the Spanish parliament adopted the Statute of Autonomy of Ceuta. The law defined the city as an integral part of the Spanish nation and granted it its own self-governing bodies.

Today, Ceuta has a local assembly and government, uses the euro, participates in Spain’s political system, and is under the protection of the Spanish armed forces.

At the same time, the city remains a constant subject of dispute between Madrid and Rabat.

Spain considers the issue of Ceuta’s ownership closed and refuses to discuss the transfer of the territory. Morocco avoids direct military confrontation but periodically uses the issue of the cities in domestic politics and diplomatic relations with Spain.

Migration as a tool of pressure

The most notable crisis occurred in May 2021. At that time, about 8,000 people crossed from Morocco into Ceuta in two days after control was relaxed on the Moroccan side.

The events were linked to Spain’s decision to admit Polisario Front leader Brahim Ghali, who advocates for the independence of Western Sahara, for treatment. Relations between Madrid and Rabat sharply deteriorated, and the migration flow was perceived as a form of political pressure.

The current situation is different so far. The Spanish government emphasizes cooperation with Morocco and thanks its security forces for preventing thousands of crossings. There is no direct evidence that Rabat intentionally organized the July 2026 crisis.

However, the experience of 2021 makes it necessary to closely monitor not only migration statistics but also the political relations between the two states. The Moroccan side’s control over approaches to Ceuta can drastically change the situation in just a few hours.

The border where different eras collided

Today’s crisis in Ceuta appears modern: social networks, human traffickers, court decisions, European migration rules, army units, and an internal EU dispute.

But the very reason for the city’s particular vulnerability arose centuries ago.

Ceuta became significant due to its location at the Strait of Gibraltar. It was contested by Phoenicians, Romans, Byzantines, Muslim dynasties, Portugal, Spain, and North African rulers. The city has always been a gateway between two seas and two continents.

Previously, Roman goods, African gold, Muslim armies, and Portuguese ships passed through these gates. Today, residents of Morocco and other African countries try to enter Europe through them.

That is why NANews — News of Israel views what happened not as an isolated attempt to breach a barrier. It is a new episode in the centuries-old struggle for control over the point where Africa meets Europe.

Ceuta remains Spanish territory, but its geography has not disappeared. A few kilometers of border continue to connect and simultaneously divide two continents, two political systems, and two completely different levels of life.

And the death of at least 18 people shows the cost of this border: behind historical treaties, questions of sovereignty, and European security are people who dared to enter the sea or rush into a stampede for a few meters of Spanish land.

#promotion – In Haifa, many people seek a cosmetologist not just for a “beauty procedure,” but because their skin has changed: wrinkles, acne, spots, dull complexion, sagging, or cellulite have appeared. Sol Clinics offers consultation, skin diagnostics, and personalized selection of face and body treatments.

Cosmetologist in Haifa: how Sol Clinics helps skin look fresher, younger, and more well-groomed

When someone types the query “cosmetologist Haifa” into Google, it almost always reflects more than just a desire to “do something for the face.”

More often, there is a specific problem behind it.

• The skin has become dull.
• Wrinkles have appeared.
• The facial contour has become less defined.
• Sun-induced pigment spots have become more noticeable.
• Acne persists, even though the teenage years are long gone.
• After acne, traces, scars, or uneven texture remain.
• The skin has lost density.
• A double chin has appeared.
• The body has become swollen, and cellulite is more noticeable.

At this moment, a person needs not a random salon or a “magic procedure,” but a specialist who will calmly assess the skin condition, explain what is happening, and offer a clear action plan.

This is the approach of Sol Clinics — a cosmetic center for face and body in Haifa.

Here, the focus is on cosmetologist consultation, computer skin diagnostics, hardware cosmetology, care procedures, and personalized program selection for face and body.

More about Sol Clinics: https://cosmetology.nikk.co.il/

The center has been operating since 2016 and is located at: Haifa, Histadrut, 44, Check-Post.

Cosmetic center in Haifa: why it is important to start with skin diagnostics

The main mistake in cosmetology is choosing a procedure by name.

A friend did RF-lifting — so I need it too.

Someone praised IPL on Instagram — so it will solve any pigmentation.

The ad said “rejuvenation” — so the procedure suits everyone.

In practice, everyone’s skin is different.

One client has a problem related to age-related loss of tone.

Another has issues with acne and inflammation.

A third has pigmentation after sun exposure.

A fourth has sensitive skin, rosacea, or couperose.

A fifth has swelling, lymph issues, cellulite, and sagging body skin.

Therefore, a good cosmetologist in Haifa should start not with selling a procedure, but with the question: what exactly is happening with the skin and what result does the person want to achieve.

At Sol Clinics, the first visit revolves around consultation, computer skin diagnostics, and selecting an individual plan.

This is especially important for Israel, where the skin faces strong sun, humidity fluctuations, air conditioning, stress, hormonal changes, and aging processes daily.

Cosmetology in Haifa is not just about beauty.

It’s about proper care, prevention, recovery, skin tone, and a safe approach to procedures.

What problems most often lead to a cosmetologist

People rarely come to a cosmetologist with an abstract phrase: “I want to do something.”

Usually, the request is much more specific.

“What to do about wrinkles?”

“Why does my face look tired?”

“How to remove pigment spots?”

“Can the facial contour be tightened without surgery?”

“Why have pimples reappeared after 30?”

“What helps with post-acne?”

“How to remove a double chin?”

“Are there procedures for cellulite?”

“How to prepare the skin for summer?”

“Can IPL be done in Israel?”

On the Sol Clinics website, the main problems clients address include skin aging, pigmentation disorders, double chin, dull complexion, rosacea, dermatitis, wrinkles, acne, scars, blackheads, sagging skin, and cellulite.

These are exactly the requests most often sought by residents of Haifa, Kiryat, Nesher, Tirat Carmel, Akko, and northern Israel.

Hardware cosmetology in Haifa: when a cream is not enough

Home care is important.

Good cleansing, SPF, hydration, restoring the skin barrier, the right serums, and regularity really matter.

But there are conditions where home care alone is no longer enough.

If the skin has lost tone, pronounced wrinkles have appeared, pigmentation has become denser, acne has left marks, the facial contour has changed, and cellulite does not respond to creams, a person begins to seek hardware cosmetology in Haifa.

Sol Clinics offers various directions in aesthetic and hardware cosmetology: RF-lifting, IPL rejuvenation, IPL for acne, IPL for pigmentation, mesotherapy, MesoStrip, pressotherapy, lymphatic drainage, cellulite therapy, working with skin tone of the face and body.

The main point of this approach is not to prescribe one trendy procedure to everyone.

The point is to select a method for a specific problem.

Problem	What is usually sought	What directions can be discussed during the consultation
Wrinkles, loss of tone, facial contour	RF-lifting Haifa, facial rejuvenation Haifa	RF-lifting, mesotherapy, care programs
Pigmentation, sun spots	IPL Haifa, pigmentation Haifa	IPL, brightening programs, home care, SPF
Acne, inflammation, post-acne	acne treatment Haifa, post-acne Haifa	IPL for acne, mesotherapy, care, working with inflammation
Dull complexion	facial care Haifa, facial cleansing Haifa	skin diagnostics, care procedures, mesotherapy
Cellulite and swelling	pressotherapy Haifa, lymphatic drainage Haifa	pressotherapy, lymphatic drainage, anti-cellulite programs
Sagging body skin	hardware cosmetology Haifa	RF, lymphatic drainage, body programs

NAnews — Israel News notes: an advertising article about a cosmetic clinic should be useful for the reader. Therefore, it is important not just to list procedures, but to explain in which cases a person starts looking for a cosmetologist and what questions to ask before booking.

RF-lifting in Haifa: when the skin loses tone

One of the most frequent requests is RF-lifting Haifa or RF-lifting face in Haifa.

This procedure is often sought by people who notice that their skin has become less dense, the face looks tired, contours have softened, wrinkles, jowls, or a double chin have appeared.

RF-lifting is a hardware method used to work with skin tone, facial contour, and age-related changes.

Advertising texts often promise too much: “minus 10 years,” “lift without surgery,” “permanent result.”

Such writing is incorrect.

It is more accurate to say honestly: RF-lifting can be part of a rejuvenation and skin care program, but the number of procedures, frequency, areas of impact, and expected result should be determined after consultation.

Who RF-lifting may be relevant for:

• for women and men after 30–35 years;
• with reduced skin tone;
• with changes in facial contour;
• with fine and medium wrinkles;
• with a double chin;
• with sagging skin;
• with a desire to improve the appearance of the face without surgical intervention.

It is important to understand: RF-lifting is not a replacement for plastic surgery and not a universal solution for all age-related changes.

But for many clients, it is a convenient way to start systematic work on skin quality.

IPL rejuvenation in Haifa: pigmentation, vessels, and complexion

In Israel, the topic of pigmentation is especially relevant.

Sun, age, hormonal changes, pregnancy, post-acne, insufficient SPF protection — all this can lead to the appearance of spots on the face.

Therefore, queries like “IPL Haifa”, “IPL rejuvenation Haifa”, “pigmentation removal Haifa”, “facial pigmentation Israel”, and “how to remove sun spots” are very important for a cosmetic clinic.

IPL can be used in programs aimed at improving complexion, addressing signs of photoaging, pigmentation spots, and vascular manifestations.

But here it is especially important not to act randomly.

Pigmentation can vary.

Some spots are related to the sun.

Others are due to hormonal changes.

Still others are from acne scars.

Fourth ones can worsen with improper care or aggressive procedures.

Therefore, before IPL, it is important to understand the skin type, nature of pigmentation, season, contraindications, skin’s reaction to the sun, and home care.

For Israel, a separate question is whether procedures can be done in the summer.

The answer should not be universal.

It all depends on the specific procedure, skin condition, phototype, level of pigmentation, client’s lifestyle, and readiness to strictly use SPF.

That is why a consultation with a cosmetologist in Haifa is not a formality but an important step before the procedure.

Acne and post-acne: when a cosmetologist is needed, not random store-bought care

Acne is not just a teenage issue.

In adult women and men, inflammations can appear after 25, 30, 35, and even after 40 years.

The reasons can vary: hormonal changes, stress, diet, improper care, comedogenic cosmetics, skin barrier disruptions, climate, sweat, sunscreen, skin diseases.

Therefore, the query “acne treatment Haifa” or “cosmetologist for acne Haifa” often means: the person is already tired of trying pharmacy creams, TikTok advice, and random masks.

With acne, it is important not to traumatize the skin even more.

It is necessary to understand if there are active inflammations, comedones, enlarged pores, blackheads, painful elements, acne marks, scars, or post-acne.

At Sol Clinics, the directions include working with acne and IPL therapy for acne.

Such a topic requires a careful approach: it is impossible to promise “we will completely cure acne” because acne can have medical causes and sometimes requires a dermatologist’s involvement.

But a cosmetologist can help build a competent care routine, select procedures, reduce the severity of inflammations, work with acne consequences, and explain what should not be done at home.

What clients with acne usually fear:

• that it will get worse after cleaning;
• that the procedure will leave marks;
• that the skin will be overdried;
• that inflammations will intensify;
• that the cosmetologist will press everything indiscriminately;
• that no one will explain the cause of the problem.

Therefore, the article, page, and consultation should speak calmly to the person: first diagnosis, then plan, then careful work.

Pigmentation in Israel: why spots return

A separate big topic is pigmentation in Israel.

Even if a person has had a good procedure, spots can return if the skin is not protected from the sun.

That is why working with pigmentation is not just IPL or a cosmetic procedure.

It is also daily discipline: SPF, protection renewal, caution with actives, avoiding aggressive self-care, understanding seasonality.

Frequent queries:

• pigmentation Haifa
• pigmentation removal Haifa
• sun spots on the face
• melasma Israel
• how to remove brown spots on the face
• skin lightening Haifa
• IPL for pigmentation Haifa

These queries are especially important for the audience that has moved to Israel and faced a new climate.

Skin that previously reacted normally to the sun in another country may develop spots faster in Israel, lose moisture, and react to active products.

Therefore, a cosmetologist in Haifa must consider not only age and skin type but also the local climate.

Mesotherapy in Haifa: when the skin lacks freshness and recovery

The query “mesotherapy Haifa” is usually entered by people who notice that their skin has become duller, drier, thinner, or tired.

Mesotherapy can be discussed as part of a program to restore skin quality, improve appearance, work with dull complexion, fine wrinkles, dehydration, uneven texture, and age-related changes.

But here too, one should not approach it with a template.

One client needs mesotherapy.

Another needs skin barrier restoration first.

A third needs work with acne.

A fourth needs competent home care and SPF.

A fifth needs a combined program.

Therefore, Sol Clinics emphasizes selecting procedures after consultation.

For the client, this is especially important because they are not required to understand the difference between mesotherapy, RF lifting, IPL, or facial cleansing.

The specialist’s task is to explain in simple terms what is suitable for their situation.

Facial cleansing in Haifa: a basic procedure often where care begins

Many clients start not with RF or IPL, but with a simple query: “facial cleansing Haifa”.

This is an understandable and widespread entry into cosmetology.

A person sees blackheads, enlarged pores, comedones, dullness, uneven skin, a feeling of dirtiness, or a tired facial appearance.

But even facial cleansing should not be the same for everyone.

Skin can be dry, oily, sensitive, prone to inflammations, with couperose, with rosacea, with active acne, or with a disrupted barrier.

Therefore, it is important that the cosmetologist not just “cleans the face” but understands the skin condition and chooses the appropriate method.

Good facial cleansing is not aggression.

It is a careful procedure after which the person understands how to care for their skin further.

Pressotherapy and lymphatic drainage in Haifa: body, swelling, cellulite

The Sol Clinics website works not only with the face but also with the body.

And here, important queries are:

• pressotherapy Haifa
• lymphatic drainage Haifa
• cellulite Haifa
• anti-cellulite procedures Haifa
• flabby body skin
• cavitation Haifa
• cold laser lipolysis Haifa

Many people come to body procedures not because they want an “ideal figure” but because they feel swelling, heaviness, decreased tone, changes after weight gain, sedentary work, stress, low activity, or age-related changes.

Pressotherapy and lymphatic drainage can be part of a body care program aimed at a feeling of lightness, working with swelling, improving skin appearance, and supporting anti-cellulite programs.

It is important not to promise the impossible.

Cellulite is a complex aesthetic problem that depends on the structure of subcutaneous fat, hormonal background, metabolism, activity, diet, and skin condition.

But hardware procedures can be part of a comprehensive approach, especially if the person is ready to work with the body systematically.

Russian-speaking cosmetologist in Haifa: why language matters

For many residents of Israel, the query “Russian-speaking cosmetologist Haifa” is as important as the name of the procedure.

Cosmetology is an area where a person must clearly explain what bothers them.

When did the spots appear?

What procedures have already been done?

Was there an allergy?

How does the skin react to the sun?

What products are used at home?

Is there pregnancy, lactation, chronic diseases, medication intake, or skin sensitivity?

What is the person afraid of?

What result do they consider acceptable?

When the specialist and client speak a common language, the consultation becomes calmer and more precise.

That is why for the Russian-speaking audience of Haifa, Kiryat, Nesher, and northern Israel, Sol Clinics can be a convenient option: the person receives not only the procedure but also an explanation without a language barrier.

NAnews — Israel News notes: for Russian-speaking Israelis, services where you can receive a professional service and simultaneously understand what exactly is being done to you, why it is needed, and what limitations exist are especially important.

The first visit to a cosmetologist in Haifa: what is important to ask

The first visit is not just “to schedule a procedure”.

It is a moment when the client should get answers to important questions.

What is my skin type?

Why have wrinkles, spots, acne, or a dull complexion appeared?

What procedure do I really need?

Can it be done in the summer?

How many procedures will be needed?

When will the effect be visible?

Are there any contraindications?

What should not be done after the procedure?

What home care is needed?

Do I need to change SPF?

Can procedures be combined?

What to do if the skin is sensitive?

The Sol Clinics website currently lists a promotion: first visit — 268 shekels.

The first visit includes a cosmetologist consultation and computer skin diagnostics.

There is also an offer: bring a friend — and you both receive a gift.

It is better to check the current conditions directly on the website or by phone, as promotions may change.

Booking and details:

https://cosmetology.nikk.co.il/

Cosmetologist at Check Post: convenient for Haifa, Krayot, Nesher, and Tirat Carmel

For a cosmetology center, not only procedures, equipment, and specialists’ experience are important, but also the location.

Sol Clinics is located in Haifa at:

Histadrut, 44, Check Post

For Haifa residents, this is a clear and convenient city point.

Check Post is well known to those who live or work in different areas of the city: on Carmel, in Hadar, in Neve Sha’anan, in the Lower City, in the Mifratz Haifa area, and near industrial and commercial zones.

It is convenient to visit for a cosmetologist consultation, skin diagnostics, or a procedure without turning the visit into a separate half-day trip.

But the location of Sol Clinics is important not only for Haifa itself.

Check Post is located so that it is convenient to reach from nearby cities in northern Israel.

For residents of Krayot — Kiryat Bialik, Kiryat Motzkin, Kiryat Yam, and Kiryat Ata — this can be a practical option when a nearby cosmetologist is needed, but you don’t want to go to the center of Haifa or look for a clinic far from the usual route.

For Nesher residents, Sol Clinics is also in an accessible area.

You can book a consultation, RF lifting, IPL, mesotherapy, facial cleansing, pressotherapy, or body procedure without a long journey across the north.

For residents of Tirat Carmel, Akko, Haifa suburbs, and the northern coast, Check Post also remains a convenient point: you can come after work, on the way for errands, before a meeting, or on a day when there is already a trip to Haifa.

This is especially important for those looking not just for a cosmetic procedure, but a place where you can calmly discuss skin condition and get a clear care plan.

Acne, pigmentation, wrinkles, post-acne, dull complexion, double chin, cellulite, swelling, or skin laxity — all these topics require not haste, but careful consultation.

For Russian-speaking clients, the language of communication is also important.

When a person can explain their problem without tension, talk about previous procedures, allergies, skin reactions to the sun, or home care, the consultation becomes more accurate and calm.

Therefore, Sol Clinics at Check Post can be considered a convenient cosmetology center not only for Haifa residents but also for those coming from Krayot, Nesher, Tirat Carmel, Akko, and other cities in northern Israel.

Address:

Haifa, Histadrut, 44, Check Post

Website – https://cosmetology.nikk.co.il/

How to understand what procedure you need

You don’t need to choose between RF, IPL, mesotherapy, pressotherapy, or acne treatment on your own.

The best way is to start with diagnostics.

But you can understand the direction in advance.

If you are concerned about the face contour, double chin, skin laxity, and age-related changes — it is worth discussing RF lifting and rejuvenation programs.

If you are concerned about spots, uneven tone, sun marks, vascular manifestations — it is worth discussing IPL and pigmentation care.

If you are concerned about acne, comedones, inflammations, post-acne — it is worth discussing the acne treatment program.

If the skin is dull, dry, tired, dehydrated — it is worth discussing care procedures, mesotherapy, and home care.

If you are concerned about cellulite, swelling, heaviness, body laxity — it is worth discussing pressotherapy, lymphatic drainage, and body hardware programs.

If a person does not know what they need, that’s normal.

That’s what a cosmetologist consultation is for.

Why Sol Clinics might be of interest to those looking for a cosmetologist in Haifa

Sol Clinics combines several important factors.

The center is located in Haifa, in the Check Post area.

It has been operating since 2016.

Offers procedures for face and body.

Focuses on consultation and skin diagnostics.

Works with age-related changes, acne, pigmentation, cellulite, dull complexion, skin laxity, and other aesthetic requests.

Offers hardware procedures: RF, IPL, pressotherapy, lymphatic drainage, mesotherapy, and other directions.

For Russian-speaking clients, another important point: you can explain the problem clearly, without stress, and without feeling unheard.

In cosmetology, this matters.

Because it’s about the face, skin, appearance, and trust.

Contacts Sol Clinics

Sol Clinics — cosmetology center for face and body in Haifa

Address: Haifa, Histadrut, 44, Check Post

Website: https://cosmetology.nikk.co.il/

Before booking, it is worth clarifying current promotions, schedule, procedure costs, and consultation availability.

FAQ: frequently asked questions about a cosmetologist in Haifa

How to choose a cosmetologist in Haifa?

It is important to look not only at the procedure price but also at the approach. A good cosmetologist starts with a consultation, assessing skin condition, contraindications, lifestyle, previous procedures, and client expectations. It is especially important that the specialist explains what exactly they offer and why.

Which is better: RF lifting or IPL?

These are different procedures for different tasks. RF lifting is more often discussed for loss of tone, changes in face contour, wrinkles, and skin laxity. IPL is more often associated with pigmentation, complexion, vascular manifestations, and photoaging. The choice depends on the skin condition.

Can IPL be done in the summer in Israel?

This question needs to be resolved individually. In Israel, the sun is active most of the year, so before IPL, consultation, skin assessment, understanding risks, and strict SPF protection are especially important. The procedure is not suitable for everyone and not always in the summer period.

How many RF lifting procedures are needed?

The number of procedures depends on age, skin condition, area, severity of changes, and client goals. The course should be selected by a cosmetologist after consultation.

Does a cosmetologist help with adult acne?

A cosmetologist can help build care, select procedures, work with inflammations, comedones, post-acne, and skin quality. But if acne is related to medical reasons, a dermatologist may be needed.

What to do with pigmentation spots after the sun?

First, you need to determine the type of pigmentation. After that, a cosmetologist can offer a care program, procedures, and a home scheme. In Israel, a mandatory part of working with pigmentation is regular SPF.

Can a double chin be removed without surgery?

In some cases, hardware procedures can help improve skin tone and the appearance of the chin area. But the result depends on the cause of the problem: skin, fat tissue, anatomy, age, and lifestyle.

What is pressotherapy?

Pressotherapy is a hardware procedure associated with lymphatic drainage and body impact using compressed air. It is often discussed for swelling, a feeling of heaviness, cellulite, and body care programs.

How much does the first visit to a cosmetologist in Haifa cost?

At the time of preparing the material, the Sol Clinics website lists a promotion: first visit — 268 shekels. It is better to clarify the current price and conditions before booking.

Where is Sol Clinics located?

Sol Clinics is located in Haifa at: Histadrut, 44, Check Post.

Is there a Russian-speaking cosmetologist in Haifa?

For Russian-speaking clients, Sol Clinics is convenient because you can discuss skin condition, procedures, contraindications, and expectations in a clear language.

What procedures help with a dull complexion?

It depends on the cause. Possible care procedures, mesotherapy, work with dehydration, skin renewal, home care, and SPF. The procedure should be selected after diagnostics.

What to do with post-acne?

Post-acne can manifest as spots, scars, uneven texture, and enlarged pores. A cosmetologist can offer a program that considers the type of traces, inflammation activity, and skin sensitivity.

What procedures help with cellulite?

Sol Clinics offers body directions, including pressotherapy, lymphatic drainage, and hardware anti-cellulite programs. But cellulite requires a comprehensive approach, not one universal procedure.

How to book at Sol Clinics?

More about Sol Clinics: https://cosmetology.nikk.co.il/

The center has been operating since 2016 and is located at: Haifa, Histadrut, 44, Check Post.