Sasha Zlobjn, the 10,000th person from the former Soviet Union to immigrate to Israel since Russia invaded Ukraine, landed at Ben-Gurion on Monday, a statement from Israel’s Absorption Ministry said.

Sasha Zlobjn, formerly a resident of Kharkiv, Ukraine, arrived in Israel with his grandparents along with dozens of other Ukrainian refugees.

“I fled Kharkiv with grandparents but unfortunately my parents stayed behind,” Zlobjn said. “It was an exhausting journey that ended with the beautiful reception here.”

Over two-thirds of the 10,000 immigrants arrived from Ukraine, with the rest coming from Russia and Belarus.

There has been a sharp rise in the number of Russian immigrants since the war began due to the government’s increased repression and fear of the country’s future in the wake of international sanctions. Since the government considers both Ukrainians and Russians to be fleeing from humanitarian crises, the ministry has grouped them together for its statistics.

The Absorption Ministry said that several hundred new immigrants have been arriving in Israel on a daily basis in recent weeks. Israeli officials believe that tens of thousands of additional immigrants from Ukraine, Russia, and Belarus will arrive in Israel in the coming weeks and months.

(YWN Israel Desk – Jerusalem)