High court rules to make surrogacy available to same-sex couples
Several sections of current law, which justices call a 'continuous, grievous human rights violation', to be revoked within six months and replaced with ones including same-sex male couples and single men
The High Court of Justice ruled on Sunday to allow same-sex couples to have children through surrogacy within six months.
According to the decision, several sections of the current law — which the court ruled as discriminatory against same-sex male couples and single men — will be revoked and replaced with new clauses devised by professionals at the end of a deliberation period.
"It is impossible to come to terms with this continuous, grievous human rights violation caused by the existing arrangement," the five justices wrote in their ruling.
Ahead of the hearing, Health Minister Nitzan Horowitz — himself an open homosexual — told the High Court last week it was impossible to amend the law and open up surrogacy to LGBTQ+ couples under the current political circumstances.
"The chance of amending the law in the current Knesset is nearly non-existent," he wrote to Attorney General Avichai Mandelblit, asking the court to rule on the matter.
Following the health minister petition, the court unanimously ruled to "abolish the definitions that completely exclude from the surrogacy arrangement single men and spouses of the same sex — i.e.,
the definition of 'intended parents', 'intended parents who are spouses' and 'single intended mother' — while interpreting the other provisions of the arrangement in accordance with the criteria outlined in the partial judgment and the presumption that any piece of legislation seeks to promote human rights and not infringe on them."
Israeli LGBT rights groups celebrated the High Court's historic and long-awaited ruling that has come in at the tail end of a decade-long political battle to push the amendment through the legislature.
Health Minister Nitzan Horowitz speaking at the Tel Aviv Pride parade last month
Horowitz said later Sunday that the ministry will uphold the verdict "to the letter," praising the court's decision as a "historic day for Israel's LGBTQ+ community and Israeli society as a whole."
"The right to equality and the right to parenthood have been given the place they deserve in the critical issue of starting a family. Discrimination against same-sex male couples and single fathers will cease. This was a years-long violation of Israel's core values
Foreign Minister Yair Lapid also welcomed the verdict, writing on Twitter that "being a parent is a basic human right, making this a deserved moral and social decision."
Leader of the ultra-Orthodox Shas party Aryeh Deri wrote on Twitter that the court's decision was another serious blow to Israel's Jewish identity and that "most of the nation desires safeguarding the tradition of Israel, preserving Jewish family values."
First published: 13:15, 07.11.21
High Court overturns ban on surrogacy for same-sex couples, single men
Several sections of current law, which justices called 'continuous, grievous human rights violation,' will be revoked within six months; openly gay health minister says ministry will uphold verdict 'to the letter,' praises decision as 'historic day for Israel's LGBTQ+ community, society as a whole'
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