Inquiry into Yemenite children scandal halted amid war, claims of cover-up

An official committee investigating the involvement of medical authorities in the Yemenite children affair has been closed, drawing accusations that the Israeli government is using the ongoing war as cover to shelve a sensitive historical investigation. The committee, which had been established to examine the state’s role in the controversial matter and had secured court approval to exhume more than ten graves, has ceased operations without publishing final findings.

Professor Itamar Grotto, one of the authors of an earlier investigation that concluded the healthcare system operated with institutional racism, criticised the closure. “They are trying to sweep this under the carpet,” he said, suggesting the prolonged military conflict provides convenient political cover for abandoning the inquiry.

The Yemenite children affair refers to the controversial disappearance of hundreds of children from Yemenite Jewish immigrant families in the 1950s, with many parents claiming their children were taken without consent and never returned. Decades of families’ requests for answers have led to multiple investigations over the years, though critics argue successive governments have failed to provide full accountability.

The director of Amram, an advocacy group supporting affected families, vowed to continue the fight for justice. “We will not rest and we will not be silent until justice is done,” the statement read, signalling that families affected by the scandal remain determined to pursue answers despite the official committee’s closure.

Source: Ynet — Original article in Hebrew.