Israeli Court Hears Disturbing Evidence in Ariel Daycare Abuse Case
Translated & summarized from i24NEWS by baba
An Israeli court heard disturbing evidence of systematic infant abuse at a daycare in Ariel, with police presenting thousands of hours of video footage documenting hundreds of violent incidents. Three caregivers and the kindergarten director are implicated in the abuse, which included physical violence and suffocation attempts. Former Knesset member Oren Hazan, whose children attended the daycare, shared his profound anguish over the exploitation of parental trust.
The story in 5 lines · by baba
- Three caregivers and a director are suspected of systematic infant abuse at an Ariel daycare.
- Police presented thousands of hours of video evidence documenting hundreds of cruel incidents.
- Abuse included slapping, hitting, shaking, and obstructing infants' breathing.
- Caregivers allegedly alternated actions during systematic, daily mistreatment.
- Former MK Oren Hazan expressed deep distress over the exploitation of parental trust.
A court on Thursday heard testimony regarding the extended detention of three caregivers suspected of severe infant abuse at a daycare center in Ariel. Police presented harrowing evidence from the investigation, including hours of footage documenting hundreds of instances of cruel and systematic abuse by the daycare staff over many years. Investigators have reviewed approximately 45 days' worth of video material, totaling thousands of hours, with 20 officers involved in the probe.
The footage reportedly depicts severe mistreatment of children, including throwing, slapping, hitting, shaking, and restraining them, as well as covering their mouths and airways, hindering their breathing. The investigation has identified 187 instances of abuse attributed to caregiver Daria Khalupa, for whom police requested a six-day remand extension. Caregiver Anna Peglasky is linked to 77 separate violent incidents, with additional cases where she was present. The kindergarten director, Natalia Kislevsky, is associated with 18 documented acts of violence.
Police stated that during some abuse incidents, caregivers alternated their actions, and the mistreatment occurred systematically, "day by day, hour by hour." Former Knesset member Oren Hazan, whose children attended the "horror kindergarten" in Ariel, expressed his deep distress, stating that the incident goes beyond news headlines and touches upon the profound trust parents place in caregivers, a trust he finds unimaginable to have been exploited to harm helpless infants so cruelly.
