Story of the L. family, Haifa

Irena, a non-Jewish woman, married a Jewish man in Moldova in 1997 and immigrated to Israel with him in 2000. Upon her arrival in Israel, Irena received temporary residency, which was renewed on a yearly basis. In 2003, however, the couple began to experience marital problems and they decided to file for a divorce.

During the divorce proceedings, the Court issued a warrant preventing the couple’s daughter from leaving Israel upon the request of the father. Immediately following the divorce, the Ministry of Interior demanded that Irena leave Israel immediately, but since the couple’s daughter was unable to leave the country, Irena could not take their daughter with her back to Moldova. The Ministry’s decision to cancel Irena's legal civil status in Israel was made without providing Irena the opportunity to present her case to the authorities responsible for her deportation. The outcome of the Ministry's decision would be Irena’s separation from her only child.

At the end of 2004, with the assistance of Roman Katsman, a lawyer who works in collaboration with AMF, the Haifa district court cancelled the decision made by the Ministry of Interior. Irena currently lives in Israel with her daughter and has been granted a visa which also allows her to work in Israel and which is renewed on a yearly basis. Irena, however, still has no permanent legal civil status in Israel which would ensure that she and her daughter can remain together on a permanent basis.