Israel – Ongoing intimidation and harassment of child rights defender Mordechai Leybel

https://frontlinedefenders.org/node/29048

On 26 June 2015, Israeli human rights defender Mr Mordechai Leybel was arrested and detained by Israeli police as he participated in a peaceful protest.

Mordechai Leybel is a children’s rights defender and independent journalist. He has advocated for the protection of sexually abused children and protested against the practice of keeping abused children in the care of an abusive parent.

The human rights defender was arrested and detained as he partook in a protest vigil outside the house of the Israeli Welfare Minister on 26 June 2015. Mordechai Leybel was attending the vigil in solidarity with a woman, the 5 year old son of whom had been seized by social workers on the basis that the child had kicked a chair in kindergarden. The woman had since been accompanied by Mordechai Leybel during a five day camping-protest staged outside the Minister’s house. 42 police officers arrived at the protest vigil, which was being staged by 10 people. Mordechai Leybel, along with the mother in question, were there requested to sign restraining orders. The human rights defender refused and was subsequently detained. He was released on 28 June 2015, with a restraining order prohibiting him from going near the home of the Welfare Minister for 4 days. An appeal submitted against the restraining order was dismissed, as it was deemed that the protest vigil outside the Minister’s house amounted to an “illegal gathering”, for which Mordechai Leybel was informed he may be subjected to one year imprisonment.

The detention of the human rights defender marks the most recent in a serious of acts of intimidation and harassment made against him. On 21 June 2015, Mordechai Leybel received notice of criminal proceedings being taken against him on the basis of a short public speech he made concerning the practice of taking children for adoption without their parents’ agreement. Previously, on 14 June 2015, he was summoned by Natanya police and threatened with arrest should he continue writing and using social media to share his views. On 26 May 2015 he was taken for investigation by the police and detained for 24 hours after he was found in a vehicle with posters advertising his website, ‘Bereaved Parents with Living Children’.

Front Line Defenders expresses its concern at the detention and harassment of Mordechai Leybel, as it is believed that these actions are motivated by his legitimate and peaceful work in defence of human rights.