Moral Remittances at War: The Impact of the Full-Scale Russian Invasion on Money Transfers by Ukrainian Female Labour Migrants in Israel

This study examines the remittance practices of Ukrainian female Prewar labour migrants in Israel and their evolving roles as economic providers and transnational actors amid the ongoing war in Ukraine. Based on 26 in-depth interviews and participant observations conducted at a Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church (UGCC) in Jaffa, the study employs an interpretative analysis to explore the intersections of gender, migration, and conflict. The central argument is that wartime remittances reflect a complex and ambivalent phenomenon: while migrant women express deep national solidarity by channelling their earnings across multiple levels of obligation—including close family members, local communities, and the broader national cause—they simultaneously voice strong mistrust towards the Ukrainian state, rooted in long-standing public perceptions of systemic corruption. In this context, remittances function both as expressions of moral commitment and as critiques of institutional failure. The study sheds light on the gendered dimensions of transnational support in conflict settings and the emotional tensions embedded in the act of giving.