After N12 report: interim order issued to prevent deportation of Telma Kasau

The Jerusalem Appeals Tribunal issued an interim order preventing the deportation from Israel of Telma Kasau, a mother of an Israeli citizen and common-law partner of an Israeli citizen, following an N12 report on the Population and Immigration Authority's decision. Telma will be able to stay with her partner Eyal and their daughters, and the legal battle will continue. The authority rejected her request due to her inability to divorce her former husband, and her 16-year-old daughter Adi said she does not understand how the state can decide her mother must leave.

The Jerusalem Appeals Tribunal issued today (Tuesday) an interim order preventing the deportation from Israel of Telma Kasau, a mother of an Israeli citizen daughter and common-law partner of an Israeli citizen. The order was issued following a report last week on N12 about the Population and Immigration Authority's decision that could have broken up her family. This means Telma will be able to stay alongside her partner Eyal and their daughters. The tribunal ordered the authority to submit its response to the appeal, and the legal battle, managed through her lawyers from the Varsha and Weitzen firm, will continue. The reason for the authority's decision is Telma's failure to divorce the man she married almost 30 years ago, despite tests by the authority showing that her relationship with her Israeli partner is exclusive. Before the order was issued, the authority rejected her request to extend her status and informed her she must leave. The head of the Visas and Status Division, Ronit Elian, wrote that the right to family life is relative. Her 16-year-old daughter Adi Lev said she was born and raised in Israel and does not understand how the state can decide her mother must leave.