Update: January 9, 2025

The challenges facing Tsivi and her two young boys have worsened, as her estranged husband continues to weaponize the Gett to exert control and perpetuate their suffering. Despite collective efforts to resolve the situation, his manipulative tactics and the support of enablers have deepened this painful impasse.

Recent Developments
• Luxury Apartment Acquisition: Tsivi’s husband has returned to Antwerp and is now staying in a spacious luxury apartment owned by Bracha and Lazer Geldzahler. Allegedly, several months’ rent was prepaid, enabling him to establish himself comfortably while Tsivi continues to struggle with rent in a modest home. While this arrangement may have been intended as a gesture of goodwill, it has emboldened him to persist in making unreasonable demands, stalling negotiations, and prolonging the limbo Tsivi and her children are trapped in.
• Excessive Conditions: A tentative agreement was recently brokered between his representatives and Tsivi’s advocate, but it was undermined by overly cautious conditions and unnecessary safeguards. These measures reflect misplaced fear of betrayal while ignoring the reality that Tsivi is desperate for her religious freedom and willing to make sacrifices to move forward. Instead, the added layers of complexity only serve to empower her husband’s coercive control.

The Toll on the Children

Tsivi’s children are suffering as they watch their mother endure psychological manipulation and extortion. This ongoing state of limbo deprives them of stability and peace while exposing them to the emotional strain of their father’s refusal to act in their best interests. Tsivi’s spiritual freedom means everything to her, yet her husband and those around him exploit this deeply personal value to maintain control.

A Plea for Resolution

We are calling for all parties to act for the sake of the children and bring this painful chapter to a close. The terms of the agreement are fair, and it is time to put the family’s well-being first. We hope and pray that reason will prevail and that this will come to an immediate resolution.

How You Can Help

Funds are urgently needed to:
1. Cover Tsivi’s mounting legal fees and living expenses.
2. Support advocacy efforts to apply peaceful, community-based pressure to ensure justice is served.
3. Provide therapy and stability for her children, who are caught in this cycle of coercion.

Your contribution can help Tsivi and her boys find peace, dignity, and freedom. Every donation brings us closer to breaking the chains of control and ensuring this family can move forward toward healing and hope.

Update: August 28, 2024

In recent weeks, tensions have escalated as activists and Askanim from New York traveled to Antwerp to rally community support and apply social pressure—within the bounds of legal compliance—on the husband to grant a Gett. A peaceful protest in Loosplats drew over 75 attendees, with local prestigious Dayanim and Rabbanim recognizing the importance and ethical significance of the gathering.

Despite these collective efforts, the husband remains resolute in his refusal to sign the parental agreement or grant the Gett, leaving Tsivi and her children trapped in a state of uncertainty. His recent offer to provide a Gett in exchange for unstructured access to the children—access that could be unsafe—is widely viewed as another stalling tactic. Moreover, when he fled to Mexico, he did so without even saying a proper goodbye to his children or giving them any notice to adjust. He simply disappeared, leaving Tsivi to manage alone, consistent with his pattern of evasion.

In a recent escalation, after a peaceful attempt by volunteers to communicate with him about giving the Gett, the husband ran away and filed a police report, falsely claiming that Tsivi was trying to have him harmed and was senselessly harassing him. This not only adds to the emotional strain but also incurs additional legal costs.

Meanwhile, the communities in Mexico City and Monterrey are on high alert, aware that he is hiding among them. They understand that, according to Orthodox cultural and religious practices, it is forbidden to include him in a minyan, give him an Aliyah, or engage in business with him due to his refusal to appear before a religious court. These social sanctions are essential in applying the necessary pressure.

Currently, a fresh wave of funds is desperately needed to help Tsivi cover her mounting legal bills. The husband does not contribute any money for the children’s expenses, leaving Tsivi to handle everything on her own. Unfortunately, her family is unable to assist at this time as they are overwhelmed with caring for their ailing elderly grandmother.

Your support is critical in helping Tsivi and her children break free from this cycle of abuse. Please consider donating to make a significant difference in their lives.

Rabbinaat of Antwerp Support

Peaceful protest in Antwerp

Help Tsivi An Agunah