Immigration to Israel from Russia and former Soviet countries up sharply this year

• As of June 1, approximately 5,904 have arrived in Israel from the former Soviet Union, an increase of 56.94% from 3,698 during the same period in 2014.
• 2,990 have immigrated from Ukraine, an 85.25% increase from 2014 and more than the total number of 1,982 from 2013, the year before the Ukrainian conflict began.
• Ongoing violence in Ukraine as well as the Russian economic downturn have been credited as contributing to the jump in immigrants.

Read the full story at The Times of Israel.

(Image Credit: Gideon Markowicz/FLASH90, via The Times of Israel)