1 of 13 | A Yemenite Israeli holds photos of a baby during a protest Wednesday that called on the Israeli government to address the potentially thousands of Yemenite children who were taken from their families following Israeli independence in 1948. Photo by Debbie Hill/UPI |
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June 21 (UPI) -- Thousands of people marched in Jerusalem on Wednesday to highlight what they believe is one of the most painful wounds of Israeli independence nearly 70 years ago.
Relatives, activists and some politicians participated in the march Wednesday, which called on the Israeli government to acknowledge and address what's known as the Yemenite Children Affair -- a period of time starting in 1948 during which perhaps thousands of Jewish babies from Yemenite migrants disappeared with no trace.
The babies started being taken shortly after Israel declared independence on May 14, 1948, as Yemenite migrants relocated to the new Jewish state. Upon their arrival, many of the parents say their children were taken away by the government -- supposedly either for medical care or safe keeping during the transitional period.
Some of the children, perhaps thousands, were never returned. The explanation from Israeli officials ranged, but the most oft-cited reason given was that the babies had died.
Recently released evidence from the government, however, indicates that may not be true in all cases. Instead, the newly declassified documents have led many to conclude that some babies were used for medical or scientific experiments, or they were simply given away to new families.
"After years of ignoring and denial, it's time to break the walls of silence," Israeli legislator Michal Rozin said at the Jerusalem march. "The tragedy of the abducted Yemenite children was a horrible crime."
In the past, Tel Aviv has conducted three separate investigations into the matter -- all of which concluded that most of the missing children died of disease and were buried without relatives' knowledge. Last year, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu released a trove of about 200,000 records dealing with the affair, which brought to the surface some surprising revelations.
Last week, a government committee heard testimony that some of the children died after receiving experimental protein injections, and others succumbed as the result of medical negligence.
"It's a big scandal that the doctors didn't tell the parents they were doing experiments and research on their children," committee chair Nurit Koren said. "Even worse, there are healthy babies who died from an experimental treatment. It's a crime, it was on purpose, and it let to their death."
Now, the emerging details are motivating families who lost a child to speak out and demand answers -- like what happened to their babies and whether they might still be alive today. A select few have already been reunited, BBC News reported.
In cases where the children were given to new families, advocates say evidence exists to indicate that they were mostly given to European Jews or American Jews, and not to darker-skinned Yemenite or Mediterranean Jews.
"What were its intentions towards Mediterranean Jews, the Jews of the Islamic world?" Yemenite-Israeli historian Rafi Shubeli told BBC News. "There are very many elements in Israeli society who want to avoid this kind of discussion."
Other experts note, though, that an irrefutable fact is that many Yemenites arrived in Israel at a time of war, when the child mortality rate was quite high -- a fact that might lend more credibility to government claims.
No matter the truth, relatives of the missing children say they need more answers than they have been given so far.
"I was tricked," Yemenite Israeli mother Leah Aharoni, who lost her daughter decades ago, said. "I want to find out where my daughter went. I want her to know that I didn't abandon her -- that I love her."
