Israel Police search Jerusalem for mother suspected of abducting her two children

Israeli police are appealing to the public for assistance in locating a 20-year-old Jerusalem woman suspected of abducting her two young children from Canada. The woman, identified as Aliya Joy Hirschberg, is believed to have brought the three-year-old and one-year-old children into Israel in August 2025.

Investigators at the Lev Habira police station have been looking into the case since receiving a complaint against Hirschberg. The family had reportedly been living alternately in Canada and the United States. Hirschberg holds Israeli citizenship, but her husband does not.

Following a dispute between the couple in Canada, Hirschberg allegedly took the children and traveled to Israel, where she and the children subsequently disappeared. Her husband's attempts to locate them, first through a private investigator and then through welfare authorities, ultimately led to police involvement.

Police believe Hirschberg and the children may be in the Jerusalem area. An order preventing her from leaving Israel has been issued. Authorities are urging anyone with information to contact the emergency hotline or the investigating unit.

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Police called on anyone with information about their whereabouts to contact the Israel Police emergency hotline at 100 or the investigating unit at 02-5391550.