Family of Israeli citizen claims: He came to Ukraine to visit his mother - and was drafted

Yevgeny Gurevich, a 42-year-old Israeli citizen, arrived in Ukraine in the summer of 2025 to visit his elderly mother. He did not expect the trip to change his life. Despite being an Israeli citizen, Gurevich was not allowed to leave Ukraine back to Israel for over a year, and in the past month he was forcibly conscripted into the Ukrainian army and stationed near the front line in the east of the country. His wife says he had requested years ago to renounce his Ukrainian citizenship and received indications that the process was completed. Ukrainian authorities believe he remains a Ukrainian citizen, so he was banned from leaving the country. After attempting to cross the border into Poland illegally, he was shot and wounded in the abdomen, arrested, and after a few days forcibly conscripted. His family turned to the Foreign Ministry for assistance, but according to them did not receive help. The Foreign Ministry said it provides consular assistance as much as possible.