The Great Rabbinical Court, led by the Chief Rabbi and Court President, Rabbi David Yosef, finalized a bill of divorce (get) on Monday, bringing an end to a prolonged case of an agunah (a woman chained to a marriage) that lasted six years.
The woman, a resident of the Sharon region, married a man who was 20 years younger than him and the two gave birth to a daughter. The two lived in the woman’s house, but after a short time, disagreements arose, and a legal process between the two dragged on for years in the regional rabbinate court.
The husband, who is serving time for robbing banks, was brought time and again to hearings in shackles, but consistently refused to give a “get.” The entire time, he made unusual financial demands as a condition for the divorce, and the woman considered giving up and asked to close the case.
After all attempts to reach a compromise failed, the case was transferred to the Great Rabbinical Court of Appeals in Jerusalem. The panel, led by Rabbi David Yosef, flanked by Judges Rabbi Maimon Nahari and Rabbi Meir Freeman, transferred the matter to the Aguna Prevention Department of the court management, led by Rabbi Eliyahu Maimon.
Rabbi Maimon, together with the rabbis of the Israel Prisons Service (IPS), visited the prisoner in prison and held a pointed conversation with him, during which they made clear that his continued refusal would lead him to be transferred to solitary confinement. The man was convinced, but during the hearing, the woman retreated from the financial agreement that was reached.
Rabbi Yosef took the reins to lead the personal and deep negotiations. He spoke with each side separately for hours, and though a mix of aggression and sensitivity, he managed to bring the sides to an agreement. In the late afternoon, the get was finalized, after the court scribe and witnesses were called in specially.