JERUSALEM (JTA) — Israel is looking into the possibility of adopting orphaned Haitian children.
Israel’s Social Affairs Minister Isaac Herzog has asked his staff to look into adopting Haitian children who lost their parents in the devastating earthquake on Jan. 12, according to reports in Israel.
"We are proud that Israel aided the horrible distress in Haiti and we have a moral obligation, as human beings, to aid these children," Herzog told Israel Radio over the weekend.
Herzog has asked Israel’s envoy to the Dominican Republic, Amos Radian, who is also the consular official for Haiti, to submit an official request regarding the adoptions, Haaretz reported.
Israel does not have an official adoption protocol with Haiti, the Jerusalem Post reported.
Israel helps prospective adoptive families by subsidizing the cost of international adoptions. The children are converted to Judaism upon arrival.
