Jewish refugees fleeing Russia's invasion of Ukraine this week tell Israel Hayom they stayed as long as possible. Leaving the country with a heavy heart, they say they plan to return home as soon the war is over.
Having just been discharged from the IDF, Mio Fernandez cancels plans for a long-awaited vacation and travels to Lviv to help Ukrainian Jews escape the war.
Israel Hayom reporter Yifat Erlich joins Israeli medical team and the International Fellowship of Christians and Jews as they save lives of refugees from Ukraine.
Lviv, in western Ukraine, has been something of a haven for Ukrainians fleeing Russian shelling, but now the assault is nearing the city.
Members of Hashomer Hatzair youth movement are bringing humanitarian aid to Ukrainians under siege, helping people with limited mobility cross the border, and even running a kindergarten for refugee tots.
"Russia is lying. Russia is killing civilians. Only a no-fly zone and the intervention of a third side will put an end to this terror," Mariupol resident says. The Red Cross says Russian forces laying land mines in humanitarian corridors.
Noting "morale is high," Ukrainian fighter tells Israel Hayom, "Me and my unit operate like hunters. We ambush Russian convoys, wait for them not to have any aerial cover, and strike."
Israel Hayom talks to Oleksander, a resident of Mairupol who managed to make it through the Russian blockade.
Israelis who arrived in Ukraine to visit family and friends just several days before the Russian invasion have had to adjust quickly.
"I am a [Chabad] emissary, and I cannot flee as long as there are Jews here, no way," says the rabbi of Kherson.