Lag BaOmer under the sounds of war: Jews of Ukraine came to the holy sites, which are called the ‘Ukrainian Meron’

Even war did not stop this tradition.

On May 7, 2026, on Lag BaOmer day, Jews of Ukraine once again gathered at holy sites associated with the history of Chabad and Jewish life in Eastern Europe. Despite the fact that some of these places are located in the eastern part of the country, near areas of heavy fighting, dozens of people came from different cities to pray, light a festive bonfire, and continue a tradition that is over two hundred years old.

For Israel, this story sounds especially close. Lag BaOmer in the Jewish world is firmly associated with Meron, bonfires, prayer, the memory of Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai, and thousands of people who travel to holy sites. In Ukraine, this tradition has its own route — Nizhyn and Hadiach, places associated with the great rabbis of Chabad.

That is why participants call them the ‘Ukrainian Meron.’

Why Lag BaOmer in Ukraine is associated with Nizhyn and Hadiach

For over two centuries, Jews of Ukraine, Belarus, and Russia had a special tradition: on Lag BaOmer, they would travel to the resting place of the second Lubavitcher Rebbe — Rabbi Dovber Schneuri, known as the ‘Middle Admor’ of Chabad.

He was the son of Rabbi Shneur Zalman of Liadi, the author of ‘Tanya’ and ‘Shulchan Aruch HaRav,’ the founder of the Chabad Hasidic movement.

In the Chabad tradition, Lag BaOmer at the Middle Admor was considered a special day. In the book ‘Hayom Yom,’ the Lubavitcher Rebbe wrote that for the Middle Admor, Lag BaOmer was one of the outstanding holidays when many miracles occurred, especially related to children.

Therefore, people waited for this day all year.

For many families, the trip to the holy site was not just a custom. It was hope — for children, for health, for personal salvation, for an answer in a difficult moment of life.

A tradition that even the Soviet years did not break

After the Middle Admor left this world, the tradition did not disappear. Every year, thousands of Jews from different cities of Ukraine, Belarus, and Russia came to Nizhyn, in the Chernihiv region, to pray at his holy site.

This tradition continued even during the Soviet years, when Jewish religious life was under pressure, and openly observing traditions could cost a person their job, education, freedom, and safety.

But people still went.

Sometimes quietly.

Sometimes in small groups.

Sometimes almost secretly.

That is why the current trip during the war is perceived not as an ordinary religious event, but as a continuation of a great chain of memory. If the communist regime could not destroy the tradition, the war should not stop it either.

Who came to Lag BaOmer in 2026

This year, despite the difficult security situation, dozens of Jews from different cities of Ukraine came to the holy sites.

Among them was a group from Dnipro, participants from Kyiv, representatives from Kharkiv and Zaporizhzhia. They were also joined by 15 Jews from Nizhyn itself.

This is not the massive picture of peaceful times, when trips can be planned calmly, without worries, checkpoints, restrictions, and military risks. But that is why the current visit carries special weight.

People traveled a long way to not let the war break the Jewish calendar.

On site, there was a prayer at the holy place, the lighting of the Lag BaOmer bonfire, and a Hasidic feast in the spirit of ‘Shabbat Achim’ — brotherly unity. For the participants, it was not only a holiday but also a moment of inner support.

When the country around lives under strikes, the very possibility of gathering together, praying, and maintaining tradition becomes a form of resistance to fear.

Hadiach and the memory of the first Chabad Rebbe

Simultaneously, a festive ceremony was held in Hadiach, near the holy site of Rabbi Shneur Zalman of Liadi — the founder of Chabad, the author of ‘Tanya’ and ‘Shulchan Aruch HaRav.’

Hadiach occupies a special place in the Hasidic geography of Ukraine. For many followers of Chabad, it is not just a city on the map, but part of a spiritual route connecting Eastern Europe, Jewish scholarship, Hasidic thought, and modern Jewish life.

There, too, the central lighting in honor of Lag BaOmer and the day of joy of Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai took place. It was attended by Chabad emissaries and Jews living within a few hours’ drive from this area.

For Ukraine, where the war has changed routes, habits, schedules, and the very logic of movement, such trips require not only faith but also determination.

Why this story is important to hear in Israel

The Israeli audience well understands what it means to travel to a holy site on a day when the country lives in tension. Meron for Israel is not only geography but also a symbol of national memory, prayer, fire, music, requests, and personal connection with generations.

Jews of Ukraine have a similar point of attraction.

Not as well-known to the wider Israeli public.

But very deep.

Nizhyn and Hadiach have become places for them where Jewish history does not lie in books but continues on the road, in prayer, in the Lag BaOmer bonfire, in the voices of people who come even when there is war nearby.

For NANews — News of Israel | Nikk.Agency, this topic is especially important because it shows the living connection between Ukraine, Israel, and the Jewish people. It is not only about politics, war, or diplomacy. Here, another side of Ukraine is visible — Jewish, Hasidic, historical, connected with places that matter to thousands of families in Israel and the diaspora.

“This is our Meron”

Rabbi Shneur Zalman Deitch, speaking on behalf of the Federation of Jewish Communities of Ukraine about the holy sites in the country, said that Hadiach and Nizhyn are ‘our Meron.’

This phrase explains a lot.

For those who cannot be in Israel on this day, at the grave of Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai, Ukrainian holy sites become a point where Lag BaOmer is felt not as a date on the calendar but as a living event.

According to Rabbi Deitch, it was clear that, as every year, Jews of Ukraine would once again set out to pray on this special day at the holy sites.

Even if the journey takes hours.

Even if the country is at war.

Even if the east of Ukraine remains a dangerous direction.

This is the strength of Jewish tradition: it does not cancel fear, but it does not allow fear to have the last word.

Memory that holds people together

The story of Lag BaOmer in Ukraine in 2026 is not just a religious note.

It is a story of how Jewish life is preserved where it has been tried to be broken many times. First by empires, then by the Soviet system, now by war.

But people continue to come.

To pray.

To light the fire.

To ask for children, health, protection, peace, and salvation.

For Israel, it is a reminder: the Jewish world is not limited to the borders of the state, although Israel remains its center. In Ukraine, amidst anxieties and destruction, there are still communities, emissaries, families, old cemeteries, holy sites, and traditions that connect the past with the present.

Lag BaOmer in Nizhyn and Hadiach shows that Jewish memory lives not only where it is safe. Sometimes it is especially clearly manifested precisely where it is dangerous.

And therefore, the ‘Ukrainian Meron’ in 2026 is not a beautiful metaphor, but an accurate description of what happened: people came to their holy sites, despite the war, to say a simple thing — the tradition continues.