Chabad Lubavitch of Ukraine
Chabad-Lubavitch network in Ukraine
| Chabad in Ukraine
| |
|---|---|
| Logo |  Logo of the Federation of Jewish Communities of Ukraine, through which much of the network is coordinated |
| Type | Jewish religious and educational network |
| Founded | 1990 (first permanent emissaries)[1] |
| Headquarters | Dnipro (main hub) |
| Key people | Rabbi Shmuel Kaminezki (Dnipro); Rabbi Avraham Wolff (Odesa); Rabbi Meir Stambler (chairman, FJCU) |
| Website | https://www.chabad.org/jewish-centers/country/Ukraine |
Chabad-Lubavitch maintains an extensive network of centres, synagogues, schools and social services across Ukraine, coordinated largely through the Federation of Jewish Communities of Ukraine (FJCU), founded in 1999.[2] They support thousands of people through the Jewish Relief Network Ukraine (JRNU), which Chabad.org describes as Chabad's war-time unified effort for funding and humanitarian work; in February 2023 it said that JRNU was assisting about 50,000 people in Ukraine each month.[1]
The movement's modern presence began in 1990 when the Rebbe sent the first permanent emissary couples.[1] In February 2023 Chabad.org said that 192 emissary couples were serving in Ukraine, and that Chabad had built a network of synagogues, schools and social services across 32 major cities, serving hundreds more small towns and villages.[1] Lubavitch.com, the movement's headquarters site, lists 55 institutions in Ukraine under 36 city entries (as at 23 October 2026).[3] For Crimea, see Chabad Lubavitch of Russia#Crimea.
Timeline
- 1990 – First permanent Chabad emissaries arrive; Rabbi Shmuel Kaminezki establishes Chabad in Dnipro.[1]
- 1999 – Federation of Jewish Communities of Ukraine (FJCU) founded, according to the FJCU's own website.[2]
- 2005 – Rabbi Moshe Reuven Azman, a Chabad-ordained rabbi outside the federation, is elected chief rabbi by bodies headed by Vadim Rabinovich, including the United Jewish Community of Ukraine; the federation's rabbis back Azriel Haikin.[4]
- 2014–2022 – Chabad centres in eastern Ukraine affected by conflict; many continue operations. Donetsk fell to Russian-backed separatists in 2014,[1] and in 2014 the Menorah Centre in Dnipro housed some of the hundreds of refugees displaced by the fighting.[5]
- 24 February 2022 – Full-scale invasion; Chabad network evacuates thousands and provides humanitarian aid. According to Chabad.org, 35,000 people were evacuated from the country with JRNU's help in the first months of the war, and another 30,000 internally displaced people were cared for.[1]
Chabad centres, synagogues, schools and groups by city
Note that the Chabad source of this data includes those parts of what was 'Ukraine' which are now part of Russia, including Donetsk, Kherson, Luhansk and Zaporizhzhia oblasts. For Crimea, see Chabad Lubavitch of Russia#Crimea.
Source: Chabad.org directory of Chabad centres in Ukraine.[6] The total of 71 is the sum of the listings in that directory; Lubavitch.com lists 55 institutions.[3]
Key Chabad figures in Ukraine
| Name | Role | Location |
|---|---|---|
| Rabbi Shmuel Kaminezki | Chief Rabbi of Dnipro; described in 2020 as head of the Council of Hasidic Rabbis of Ukraine[7] | Dnipro |
| Rabbi Avraham Wolff | Chief Rabbi of Odessa and southern Ukraine; see Odesa Chabad | Odessa |
| Rabbi Meir Stambler | Chairman, Federation of Jewish Communities of Ukraine[2] | National |
| Rabbi Moshe Reuven Azman | Chabad-ordained claimant to the title of chief rabbi of Ukraine; JTA described him in 2005 as "not a member of the federation"[4] | Kyiv |
Key funders
Chabad operations in Ukraine receive major support from the Jewish Federations of North America (JFNA), UJA-Federation of New York, and individual philanthropists. During the 2022 war, JFNA and partners channelled millions in humanitarian aid through Chabad’s Jewish Relief Network Ukraine: Chabad.org reported in 2023 that a JFNA official had overseen the distribution of $5 million in aid to Chabad in Ukraine, and that the UJA-Federation of New York had been a major donor to Chabad's Ukraine efforts from the start of the war.[8]
The flagship Menorah Center in Dnipro, which Chabad and its patrons describe as the largest Jewish community centre in the world,[9] was financed primarily by Ukrainian oligarchs Ihor Kolomoisky and Gennadiy Bogolyubov. In 2014 JTA called it the "$100 million JCC of Dnepropetrovsk" and wrote that it was "said to be the largest Jewish community center in Europe" (Europe rather than the world);[5] the same report was republished by The Times of Israel and the Forward.[10][11] Other reported costs are lower (see Menorah Centre (Dnipro)): JTA reported in 2008 that the planned centre would cost $15 million to $20 million, and RFE/RL wrote in 2012 that "some sources" put the cost at $60 million, a figure it could not independently confirm.[12][13] In 2024 JTA described the Chabad-run centre as "often deemed the largest Jewish communal structure in the world".[14]
Major institutional and philanthropic supporters include:
- Jewish Federations of North America (JFNA) and UJA-Federation of New York, which have funded war-time aid, generators, evacuation and relief through JRNU. Chabad.org reported in 2023 that JFNA had overseen $5 million in aid to Chabad in Ukraine.[8] JFNA says that by February 2026 the Federations and their partners (the Jewish Agency, JDC and World ORT) had raised and allocated over $100 million in humanitarian aid for Ukraine; its report does not give a figure for Chabad.[15]
- Ohr Avner Foundation (founded by Lev Leviev), which funds Chabad schools in Ukraine. JTA reported in 2007 that its funding allowed many Chabad schools in the former Soviet Union to operate without charging tuition,[16] and Lubavitch.com reported in 2015 that Leviev's funding had opened a preschool, a day school and a high school in Kharkiv.[17] The Jewish Chronicle reported in 2008 that Leviev's Or Avner network had 120 schools and 60 kindergartens in the former Soviet Union, Eastern Europe, Germany, North America and Israel.[18]
- Rohr Family Foundation. Israel National News described the philanthropist George Rohr in 2022 as among the greatest supporters of Chabad communities, organisations and Chabad Houses in Ukraine over the previous 32 years.[19] Lubavitch.com reported in 2015 that the Kharkiv synagogue had been renovated with his support,[17] and Chabad of Chernivtsi lists the Rohr Family Foundation among its supporters.[20]
- The Mayberg family, which Chabad of Chernivtsi lists among its supporters;[20] the Main Synagogue of Bukovina in Chernivtsi is named after the family.[21]
- Genesis Philanthropy Group, co-founded by Mikhail Fridman, Petr Aven and German Khan, which pledged $10 million in emergency aid to Jews in Ukraine at the outset of the 2022 war. Of the first $5 million, the FJCU received seed funding for a campaign to distribute 30,000 food packages; the rest went to the Jewish Agency, JDC and regional and local Jewish organisations.[22][23]
Additional partners include the International Fellowship of Christians and Jews (IFCJ) for humanitarian operations, the American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee (JDC) for coordinated relief, and the Orthodox Union.[8] JTA reported in March 2022 that many Russian billionaires of Jewish background, among them the three Genesis founders, had increased their giving to Jewish charities in recent years, and that many had given to Chabad in Russia and to Moscow's Jewish Museum and Tolerance Center.[24] Fridman is listed among the founders of the museum's endowment fund.[25] Local Chabad houses continue to receive donations from community members for day-to-day operations.
Disputes and legal matters
These matters have different statuses and are kept separate. For more detail, see Chabad and Ukraine.
Chief rabbi dispute
In September 2005 two lay bodies headed by Vadim Rabinovich elected Rabbi Moshe Reuven Azman "chief rabbi of Ukraine". Most of the country's rabbis, led by the FJCU, rejected the election and backed Rabbi Azriel Haikin.[4] The World Jewish Congress reported that Azman, "unlike other Orthodox rabbis", was "not affiliated with the Chabad-led federation".[26]
Ihor Kolomoisky
Ihor Kolomoisky, a co-funder of the Menorah Centre,[5] has been the subject of proceedings with different statuses:
- Government designation (United States). On 5 March 2021 the US Secretary of State publicly designated him for "involvement in significant corruption". This is an executive finding, not a court ruling.[27]
- Civil liability (England). In 2025 the English High Court held him and Gennadiy Bogolyubov liable to PrivatBank for a misappropriation of about US$1.9 billion, and on 22 May 2026 the Court of Appeal dismissed their appeal. This is a civil judgment, not a criminal conviction.[28]
- Allegation (Ukraine). Since September 2023 he has been held in pre-trial detention in Ukraine on suspicion of fraud and money laundering, and later of ordering an attempted murder in 2003; he has denied wrongdoing, and no conviction has been found as of October 2026.[29][30]
None of the sources cited here links these proceedings to the funding of Chabad institutions.
See also
- Chabad and Ukraine
- Crimea (section of Chabad Lubavitch of Russia)
- Anatevka
- Ihor Kolomoisky
- Federation of Jewish Communities of Ukraine
- Menorah Centre (Dnipro)
- Shmuel Kaminezki
- Moshe Reuven Azman
- United Jewish Community of Ukraine
- Odesa Chabad
- Uman (Breslov pilgrimage site)
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 1.6 Dovid Margolin, "The Jews of Ukraine Mark One Year of War and Resolve", Chabad.org, 22 February 2023.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 "Rabbi Meir Stambler", Federation of Jewish Communities of Ukraine, consulted 20 October 2026: "In 1999, together with other rabbis, he created the Federation of Jewish Communities of Ukraine."
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 Lubavitch.com, "Ukraine – Centers", retrieved 23 October 2026.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 "In Ukraine, dueling chief rabbis", Jewish Telegraphic Agency, 24 October 2005.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 Cnaan Liphshiz, "Giant Ukraine JCC provides shelter from the storm – in style", Jewish Telegraphic Agency, 1 October 2014.
- ↑ Chabad.org, "Chabad centers in Ukraine" (directory), consulted 20 October 2026.
- ↑ Shimon Briman, "The spiritual leaders of Ukraine's Jewish community", Ukrainian Jewish Encounter, 28 May 2020.
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 8.2 Yaakov Ort, "Jewish Philanthropies' Aid to Ukrainian Jews Continues as Crisis Intensifies", Chabad.org, 4 July 2023.
- ↑ Tamar Runyan, "World's Largest Jewish Center Opens in Dnepropetrovsk", Chabad.org, 17 October 2012.
- ↑ Cnaan Liphshiz, "Giant 22-story Ukraine JCC provides refuge – in style", The Times of Israel (from JTA), 14 October 2014.
- ↑ "Sparkling $100M Jewish Community Center Towers Over East Ukraine City", The Forward (from JTA), 2 October 2014.
- ↑ "Ukraine city building toward prominence", Jewish Telegraphic Agency, 25 September 2008.
- ↑ "Ukraine Unveils Large Jewish Center, Holocaust Museum", Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 17 October 2012.
- ↑ Marcel Gascón Barberá, "Baking matzah and defying blackouts, Dnipro's Jews press on despite the grind of Russia's war on Ukraine", Jewish Telegraphic Agency, 26 August 2024.
- ↑ "Four Years On, Federations' Commitment to Ukraine is Unwavering", The Jewish Federations of North America, 24 February 2026.
- ↑ "School in Ukraine Resists an Alleged Takeover by Chabad", Jewish Telegraphic Agency, 1 June 2007.
- ↑ 17.0 17.1 Baila Olidort, "Abandoned in Kharkiv? Community in Crisis Struggles for Survival", Lubavitch.com, 9 April 2015.
- ↑ Anshel Pfeffer, "Cash crisis rocks Chabad", The Jewish Chronicle, 13 November 2008.
- ↑ "Chabad rabbis from Ukraine hold summit in New York", Israel National News, 23 May 2022.
- ↑ 20.0 20.1 Chabad of Chernivtsi, "About and Contact", accessed 23 October 2026.
- ↑ "Серія вітражів для Головної Синагоги Буковини ім. родини Майбергів (м. Чернівці)" ("Series of stained-glass windows for the Main Synagogue of Bukovina named after the Mayberg family (Chernivtsi)"), Committee for the Shevchenko National Prize of Ukraine, accessed 23 October 2026.
- ↑ Genesis Philanthropy Group, "Genesis Philanthropy Group Announces $10 Million in Emergency Assistance to Jews of Ukraine", press release, PR Newswire, 28 February 2022.
- ↑ Sue Surkes, "Genesis Fund oligarchs pledge $10 million for Jews in Ukraine", The Times of Israel, 1 March 2022.
- ↑ Asaf Elia-Shalev, "Russia's Jewish oligarchs and their donations come under threat of Western sanctions amid Ukraine war", Jewish Telegraphic Agency, 1 March 2022.
- ↑ Jewish Museum and Tolerance Center, "The Endowment Fund", accessed 23 October 2026.
- ↑ "Dispute in Ukraine over election of new chief rabbi", World Jewish Congress, 20 September 2005.
- ↑ Antony J. Blinken, "Public Designation of Oligarch and Former Ukrainian Public Official Ihor Kolomoyskyy Due to Involvement in Significant Corruption", US Department of State, 5 March 2021.
- ↑ JSC Commercial Bank PrivatBank v Kolomoisky & Anor [2026] EWCA Civ 658 (22 May 2026), Find Case Law (The National Archives).
- ↑ "Ukrainian oligarch Ihor Kolomoisky detained on suspicion of fraud and money laundering", The Guardian, 3 September 2023.
- ↑ Mariana Zinchenko, "Коломойському продовжили арешт у справі про замовне вбивство" (Kolomoisky's detention extended in contract-killing case), Hromadske Radio, 15 October 2026.