Latest news with #LevTahor
Al Arabiya
27-02-2025
- Al Arabiya
Guatemala arrests US, Canadian sect members for alleged child abuse
Guatemalan authorities have arrested three Americans and a Canadian, alleged members of an ultra-orthodox Jewish sect under investigation for child sex abuse, the police and prosecutors said Wednesday. The arrests late Tuesday followed a raid on a farm run by members of the Lev Tahor sect in Oratorio, southeast of Guatemala City, from where 160 children were rescued in December. The raid, during which the skeleton of a minor was found, was based on allegations of forced pregnancy, mistreatment of minors and rape, according to the public prosecutor's office. Lev Tahor, which practices an ultra-Orthodox form of Judaism in which women wear black tunics covering them from head to toe, have accused authorities of religious persecution. Members of the sect settled in Guatemala in 2013. Authorities estimate that the community is made up of roughly 50 families from Guatemala, the United States and Canada. After the December raid, relatives belonging to the sect broke into a care center trying to retrieve the children taken. The minors were recovered by authorities and placed under protection. Police executing warrants issued by a Guatemalan court arrested US citizens Nissen Yehuda Malka, 27, and Yoel Goldman, 26, in the capital on Tuesday night. American Chaim Malka, 24 and Canadian Dinkel Avrohom, 33, were handed over to Guatemala by authorities in Belize, to where they had attempted to flee, according to the prosecutor's office. Three are accused of abuse of minors and Chaim Malka of human trafficking and forced pregnancy. Interpol had also issued a red notice for the four, police said. Two other US members of the sect, one of them believed to be a leader, were arrested in Guatemala on January 30 on allegations of forcing minors to marry. A week earlier, police also detained an Israeli member of the sect wanted by Mexico for human trafficking.
Yahoo
26-02-2025
- Yahoo
Belize to send Lev Tahor Jewish sect leader, 2 others to Guatemala
By Jose A. Sanchez BELIZE CITY (Reuters) - Belize on Tuesday said it was sending three men, including a leader of the Jewish sect Lev Tahor, back to Guatemala after arresting them at the Central American countries' shared border. Avraham Dinkel, a Canadian citizen who has acted as spokesman for Lev Tahor, was among the group detained at the Belize-Guatemala border on Monday, according to Belizean authorities. See for yourself — The Yodel is the go-to source for daily news, entertainment and feel-good stories. By signing up, you agree to our Terms and Privacy Policy. Founded in 1988, Lev Tahor ("Pure Heart" in Hebrew) has faced multiple allegations of kidnapping, child marriage and physical abuse. The community has frequently moved, often fleeing child welfare agencies. Belize's head of immigration, Tanya Santos, told Reuters that Dinkel and Chaim Malka - whom Belizean media identified as a member of Lev Tahor - had aided another member, Moshe Yhida Alter, in attempting to enter the country with a falsified document. The three have been convicted and fined. Police also released a photo of Alter's falsified identification. Reuters was not immediately able to reach the three men or a lawyer representing them, though Lev Tahor has always denied allegations of abuse. 'Our only crime is being Jewish,' the organization said in a post on X this month. In December, Guatemalan authorities rescued 160 children from a compound run by Lev Tahor in southeastern Guatemala after receiving allegations of child abuse, including rape. Belizean officials are coordinating with their Guatemalan counterparts to send the men back, according to police commissioner Chester Williams. Malka and Alter are U.S. citizens. It was not immediately clear what their legal status in Guatemala was, and Guatemala's interior ministry did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Lev Tahor has come under fire in several Latin American countries in recent years, with one raid in southern Mexico in 2022 coming to a head after around 20 members escaped detention. On Sunday, El Salvador received a request from Israel's government to extradite another Lev Tahor member on charges of abusing two minors.
Reuters
26-02-2025
- Politics
- Reuters
Belize to send Lev Tahor Jewish sect leader, 2 others to Guatemala
BELIZE CITY, Feb 25 (Reuters) - Belize on Tuesday said it was sending three men, including a leader of the Jewish sect Lev Tahor, back to Guatemala after arresting them at the Central American countries' shared border. Avraham Dinkel, a Canadian citizen who has acted as spokesman for Lev Tahor, was among the group detained at the Belize-Guatemala border on Monday, according to Belizean authorities. Founded in 1988, Lev Tahor ("Pure Heart" in Hebrew) has faced multiple allegations of kidnapping, child marriage and physical abuse. The community has frequently moved, often fleeing child welfare agencies. Belize's head of immigration, Tanya Santos, told Reuters that Dinkel and Chaim Malka - whom Belizean media identified as a member of Lev Tahor - had aided another member, Moshe Yhida Alter, in attempting to enter the country with a falsified document. The three have been convicted and fined. Police also released a photo of Alter's falsified identification. Reuters was not immediately able to reach the three men or a lawyer representing them, though Lev Tahor has always denied allegations of abuse. 'Our only crime is being Jewish,' the organization said in a post on X this month. In December, Guatemalan authorities rescued 160 children from a compound run by Lev Tahor in southeastern Guatemala after receiving allegations of child abuse, including rape. Belizean officials are coordinating with their Guatemalan counterparts to send the men back, according to police commissioner Chester Williams. Malka and Alter are U.S. citizens. It was not immediately clear what their legal status in Guatemala was, and Guatemala's interior ministry did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Lev Tahor has come under fire in several Latin American countries in recent years, with one raid in southern Mexico in 2022 coming to a head after around 20 members escaped detention. On Sunday, El Salvador received a request from Israel's government to extradite another Lev Tahor member on charges of abusing two minors.
