Health officials on Monday continue to demand an autopsy following the tragic death of a 22-month-old infant on Sunday. The parents of the infant objected, prompting Zaka to intervene on the family’s behalf.
During a Monday morning hearing in the Haifa Magistrate’s Court, the court ordered the toddler released to his parents’ custody for burial after it was confirmed the death was not due to abuse or other physical assault. When the parents went to the Health Ministry for a death certificate, to permit burial, the district physician refused, stating he insists on an autopsy to determine the cause of death, exercising his legal authority to make such a demand.
Chezki Farkash, a senior northern district Zaka official explained this evening that during the past 48 hours, he and others have been working to expedite the burial of the infant girl. The toddler apparently was standing and fell and was in cardiac arrest when Zaka responders arrived along with other EMS teams. CPR was conducted for about an hour. Rabbi Sonnenfeld, the Zaka rav in the northern area ruled the infant will remain in the home pending the court ruling, which released the body as reported above.
Farkash confirms of late, there have been a number of unexplained deaths involving infants and toddlers, and following consultation with rabbonim, the body was brought to Rambam Medical Center in Haifa [on Monday evening] where non-invasive tests are being conducted in the hope of holding the levaya on Monday night. The physician is concerned and hopes an autopsy may lead to a cause of death and perhaps save the lives of other children.
The rabbonim in this case Farkash explained are permitting non-invasive procedures but not an autopsy even though the district physician insists the results may save other lives.
(Yechiel Spira – YWN Israel)
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14 Responses
Reshoim Gemurim!
“number of unexplained deaths involving infants and toddlers”
Splenda may have something to do with this.
More state of the art scanning machines are necessary so that these arguments bt doctors and families can finally come to an end.
Resho’im? Yes, poskim hold that autopsies that teach us how to avoid future deaths are assur, that we have no obligation or heter to become doctors who save lives, I wouldn’t say they are resho’im. They believe that if you can save other lives with the information you learn from autopsies, then to NOT do an autopsy is murder.
R”L!! The death isn’t tragic enough, the family has to go through this as well?!?!?
The hatred of Hareidim is so intense among secularist Israelis that they act like psychopaths, with no mercy or remorse for their evil deeds.
Splenda? Can you explain?
Zionist Monsters.
#1, #7, perhaps you might wish to place yourself in the shoes of a parent who has a child in grave danger or perhaps has lost a child r’l due to acircumstance that cold have been prevented by some kind of investigation, even,if no other alternative is possible, a partial or full autopsy. What are we told? To save a life all is transgressible except murder, ervah, and rejecting the aibishter. Everything else is mutable, if the rationale is pressing, and children are dying in the shchuna, a close look at seeking a heter for at least a partial autopsy may be called for. And the Posek should be onefamiliar with mdical issues – more than that, one with the gevurah to consult with Doctors whoare yirei shomayim.
I know. I had a son in such danger from a sudden and extremely rare illness. six weeks and two surgeries later he was boruch hashem on the mend, but not before we had to deal with issues not unlike these, involving embryonic tissue and the like. He would have lost his sight, and he might have died. So don’t rush to judgement like the conditioned lemmings you sound like. I know inside you have good hearts and good intentions. But think of the bigger picture before cursing the “secular zionist reshoim” once again.
Oh please. Its a big chillul hashem to moan and complain about an autopsy. The law is the law. If the law requires an autopsy, then it should be performed if its needed for information regarding the death. I Dont see people complaining about people getting surgery. Thats invasive. Autopsies have help the medical profession understand alot about the human body. If there is suspicion surrounding the death, an autopsy should be done. Btw, broken, Splenda contains heavy metals and is not safe at all. Thats probably what the comment was about
Wow. So many uninformed. Everyone holds that one is able to perform an autopsy if it will save lives. The only argument is does it have to be immediate or not (and in our times, information can usually be used immediately).
Fyi. Splenda is not yet approved in israel and is not sold as of yet even though the company is working towards obtaining these approvals.
You can argue this case from both sides. But, let’s look at what our Gedolei Yisroel have said about this issue over the last few decades for guidance on how to approach the issue.
They have categorically opposed autopsies, and they have conducted massive dmonstrations against them.
So, let’s not naively accept the excuses of the Government that they need these autopsies to learn how to avoid future tragedies. these are convenient lies and propaganda to bamboozle the ignorant public.
It is a fact that Israel makes tons of money conducting research for foreign governments who are forbidden by their own laws to do this kind of research. For the right price, Israel is glad to oblige.
Kovod HaMes–don’t make me laugh. Follow the money.
I am not understanding why is needed to perform the autopsy for finding if baby ingested the Splenda. Why are parents not to being believe on this if they say baby did not have Splenda? And more than that can really dissolved Splenda even being found from autopsy at all? Is not making sense to me.