Israeli Court Orders Return of Abducted Six-Year-Old to Italy Amid Abuse Claims
The Lod District Court recently rejected an appeal by an Israeli lawyer who was ordered to return her six-year-old son to his father in Italy. Judges Naftali Shila, Einat Ravid, and Tal Levi-Michaeli ruled that the mother had abducted the child to Israel without the father's consent. The parents, who met in Israel in 2019 during the father's visit as a tourist, decided to settle in Israel after the mother became pregnant, and their son was born in 2020. The family moved to Italy in December 2024, but in January the mother and child returned to Israel alone.
In May, the father filed a petition under the Hague Convention demanding the child's return to Italy. The mother claimed she fled due to severe abuse by her partner, describing a brutal attack on Christmas Eve that caused her head injury, broken teeth, and cuts, leading to hospitalization. The father denied these allegations, attributing her injuries to a fall while intoxicated and chronic gum disease. The family court accepted the father's version and ordered the child's return, finding no evidence of danger to the child if returned.
The mother's appeal argued the child would be exposed to ongoing severe physical violence, reiterating the Christmas incident and police involvement. However, the district court upheld the lower court's decision, agreeing with the father's denial of abuse. The mother was ordered to return the child to Italy and pay legal costs totaling 50,000 shekels, including 20,000 shekels from the appeal stage. The court emphasized that fleeing alleged domestic violence does not justify child abduction and that the mother should have sought protection through Italian authorities rather than unilateral action.
The father was also ordered to cover the child's living expenses in Italy until the end of the calendar year and pay 2,000 euros in child support. The ruling underscores the strict application of international custody laws and the court's stance against parental child abduction, even amid contested abuse claims.
