1. Vadim Zinovyevich Rabinovich is an Israeli and formerly Ukrainian oligarch and Jewish community leader.
31 Facts About Vadim Rabinovich
1. 2.
Vadim Rabinovich was a supporter of efforts to restore the Hurva Synagogue, for which a square was named after him after he was mistakenly believed to be deceased.
3.
In 2022, Vadim Rabinovich left Ukraine shortly after the beginning of the Russian invasion, beforehand blaming the possibility of the war on the west and Ukraine on his Facebook.
4.
In 1970, Vadim Rabinovich graduated from Kharkiv Secondary School 45 and entered the Kharkiv National Automobile and Highway University.
5.
Vadim Rabinovich's assets were confiscated, and professional activity was prohibited for 5 years.
6.
Vadim Rabinovich spent a total seven years in Soviet prisons, and has referred to the charges against him by Soviet prosecutors as "trumped up".
7.
Vadim Rabinovich has donated over to the restoration of the Hurva Synagogue.
8.
In 2012, councilwoman Rachel Azaria petitioned the Supreme Court of Israel to rescind the naming of the square, saying that Vadim Rabinovich was mistakenly thought to be deceased.
9.
Vadim Rabinovich has supported Jewish charitable organisations, and is a benefactor of the golden menorah in Jerusalem's Temple Institute.
10.
Some Jewish leaders have accused Vadim Rabinovich of trying to buy positive publicity to make up for the negative publicity generated by his financial and political activities.
11.
In fall 1993, Vadim Rabinovich was appointed as the Ukrainian representative of the Austrian-based company Nordex.
12.
Vadim Rabinovich had his visa to the United States revoked in 1995, reportedly due to links to arms dealers.
13.
In 1997, Vadim Rabinovich founded the 1+1 TV channel with Alexander Rodnyansky and Boris Fuksman.
14.
From 1997 to 2009, Vadim Rabinovich was president of the Stolichnye Novosti publishing company.
15.
Vadim Rabinovich created the All-Ukrainian Jewish Congress, then dissolved the organization in April 1999 and created the United Jewish Community of Ukraine, which elected him as its leader.
16.
On 24 June 1999, the Security Service of Ukraine banned Vadim Rabinovich from entering Ukraine for a period of 5 years, according to the SBU press service, because Vadim Rabinovich's activity caused considerable damage to the economy of Ukraine.
17.
Later media reports said the SBU decision was related to Vadim Rabinovich leaking information about the sale of ammunition by Ukraine to Yugoslavia despite the international embargo then in effect.
18.
In 2001, Vadim Rabinovich became head of the Step Towards Unity Forum of Christians and Jews.
19.
Vadim Rabinovich was president of the Arsenal Kyiv football club from 2007 until the club's collapse in 2013.
20.
In March 2013, Vadim Rabinovich survived an apparent attempt on his life in Kyiv after an explosive device was hurled into his car near the Klovska metro station.
21.
On 25 March 2014, Vadim Rabinovich registered with the Central Election Commission as a self-nominated candidate for the presidency of Ukraine.
22.
Vadim Rabinovich was elected to the Verkhovna Rada the same year, placing fourth on the pro-Russian Opposition Bloc's electoral list.
23.
However, Vadim Rabinovich did not leave the Opposition Bloc parliamentary faction, so as to maintain his status as a People's Deputy.
24.
On 15 November 2018, Vadim Rabinovich announced he would not take part in the 2019 Ukrainian presidential election, but that he would top the party list in the following 2019 Ukrainian parliamentary election.
25.
In 2021, Vadim Rabinovich launched an unsuccessful attempt to impeach Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy over the government's shuttering of three television stations deemed to be pro-Russian.
26.
On 14 February 2022, Vadim Rabinovich published a post on Facebook, stating that "the war has started" and blaming the West and Ukraine for it.
27.
On 6 September 2022 Vadim Rabinovich asked the Supreme Court of Ukraine to overturn this decision as an alleged violation of the established parliamentary procedure.
28.
Vadim Rabinovich stands for a non-aligned status of Ukraine, administrative reform and deep decentralization with maximum powers to the regional administrations.
29.
Vadim Rabinovich stated that these bills do not correspond to the concept of decentralization, so he did not vote for them.
30.
Vadim Rabinovich founded Media International Group, which included the Stolichnye Novosti publishing company, the MIGnovosti and MIGnews newspapers in Ukraine and Israel, respectively, and the Delovaya Nedelya business weekly, in 2000.
31.
Vadim Rabinovich co-owned Jewish News One from 2011 until its closure in 2014.