KYIV, Ukraine - Ukraine has increased security in the city of Uman as Jewish pilgrims arrived there to mark a religious holiday, despite warnings not to travel to the war-torn country.

Thousands of Orthodox Jews come to Uman from Israel and elsewhere every year to celebrate the Rosh Hashanah holiday in the central Ukrainian city, one of the birthplaces of the Hasidic movement.

"A special regime of entry and exit and movement around the city has been introduced," said Igor Taburets, the head of the Cherkasy region, where Uman is located.

He said nine checkpoints have been set up around the city, some 200 kilometres (120 miles) south of Kyiv, to control the flow of people.

"Despite warnings from diplomatic services and the regional administration, we have already had more than 3,000 pilgrims," Taburets said.

Kyiv has urged pilgrims not to travel to Uman since the Russian invasion last year.

The city has been targeted by Moscow. In April, a Russian strike on an apartment block killed more than 20 civilians.

Taburets said the city's curfew -- which runs from midnight to 4 am local time -- will not be cancelled for the holiday which starts on Friday.

"They (the pilgrims) are given handbooks with all these things upon arrival," he said.

Uman has been a pilgrimage site for around 200 years.

It is the birthplace of Rabbi Nachman of Breslov, one of the founders of the Jewish Hasidic movement.