Tel Aviv Court Orders Children Returned to Spain After Parents’ Divorce Dispute

A Tel Aviv family court last week dealt with a dispute involving Israeli and Portuguese parents who married in Israel, built a family there, and moved with their children to Spain about 10 years ago. The children grew up in Spain, attended local schools, made friends, and later became the focus of a cross-border custody fight after the parents divorced.

The mother flew to Israel with the children for a planned short vacation but stayed in the country. She argued that the father had cut her off financially, leaving her unable to live in Spain, without housing and without the minimum means to support herself and the minors. She also said the children’s habitual residence was not clear because they were born in Israel, have extended family there, and maintain support ties in the country.

The father filed an urgent petition, claiming civil abduction under the Hague Convention. Judge Vered Shavit Pinchestein ordered the two minors returned to Spain, finding that keeping them in Israel violated the convention. She said their center of life, social and educational identity, and natural environment were in Spain, and noted that they do not speak Hebrew as a first language and cannot read or write Hebrew, showing no day-to-day connection to Israel. The court also noted that the children have three adult siblings living in Spain after leaving Israel a decade ago.

The ruling said the mother failed to prove any exception that would justify refusing immediate return. Under Spanish law, the court explained, both parents retain parental authority after divorce, and any major change, including a change of residence, requires agreement. The judge ordered the children returned to Ibiza within seven days, said Israel must restore the prior situation while the Spanish court decides their future residence, and ruled that the father’s custody rights had been violated. He was awarded NIS 35,000 in legal costs. The mother’s lawyer said an appeal would be filed, while the father’s lawyers said the ruling sends a clear message that children’s habitual residence is determined by their real life, not by Israeli citizenship or ties to Israel.