Monday, February 28, 2022
'I'm not running' Meet the warrior Jews fighting back against Putin
Asher Joseph Cherkaskyi does not fit the stereotypical image of a Ukrainian soldier. With his long beard and kindly face, he looks more like a shopping centre Father Christmas or a Fidel Castro tribute act than a natural-born soldier. But he's one of dozens of orthodox Jews taking up arms for their country in the face of Russian invasion.
Cherkaskyi re-enlisted in the Ukrainian Defence forces over a month ago, saying at the time "I'm not running anywhere" and branding Putin's Russia the "Nazi federation." Writing on Facebook, he said: "No, I'm not running anywhere and I'm not going to run.Dear friends, as many of you know, in the wake of the escalating international situation and the threat of a full-scale war by the Nazi Federation, I signed a contract and am currently an officer of the Armed Forces of Ukraine."
He signed up for service with his 20-year-old son David in Dnipro, a city home to one of the largest Jewish populations in Ukraine.
Cherkaskyi first saw combat in the 2014 war with Russia. The AK-47-bearing Chabadnik, enlisted in the Ukrainian army in 2012 and was soon engaged in fierce combat against Russian separatists near Donetsk and was part of a frontline force that included the Organisation of Ukrainian Nationalists.
After the war, he became a local hero in Dnipro, receiving praise from regional politicians including the mayor of the city.
In a Facebook post in late 2014, then Dnepropetrovsk deputy regional governor and now mayor Boris Filatov even called the Crimean native a "hero and a symbol of the resistance".
Mayor Boris Filatov said: "Of course, some of you saw photos of a man with a huge full beard, similar to Fidel Castro. His name is Asher Joseph Cherkaskyi and he is a fighter of our Dnipro battalion. The efforts of all the liars and cowards of the world cannot stop this man. The only thing that bothers him on the front line is the lack of kosher food."
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