Israel

Dawn - a surrogate mother in the United States - delivered twins for an Israeli gay couple. She recently visited the family along with her husband. The reunion was featured on Israeli TV in a story about gay men who increasingly turn to U.S. surrogacy in their quest for parenthood. Also featured in the news clip are the Israeli couple, Circle Surrogacy's president - John Weltman - and the agency's Israeli liaison.

Jewish news service, JTA, reports that Israel's National Insurance Institute authorized its first maternity leave for a homosexual couple.

The institute approved a two-month leave from work for a gay man, Yonatan Gher, following the birth of his biological son to a surrogate mother. His male partner has begun official adoption procedures.

March 10, 2009 - According to Global Legal Monitor and the Global New Service of the Jewish People, the Tel Aviv family court approved a request by a gay couple, who had married in Toronto in 2004, to adopt a foster son they had raised for over 14 years, even though he has already reached the age of majority. The decision is the first to recognize the right of a same-sex male couple to adopt. In October 2005, Israel's Supreme Court authorized the adoption by a lesbian couple of each other's biological children.

Baby Evyatar may not know it yet, but he’s special. His parents have made an over 4,000-km journey from Tel Aviv in Israel to Mumbai only so their dream to extend their family could be realised.

Yonatan and Omer [in the red t-shirt] are gay. With sperm from Yonatan, eggs from an anonymous donor and a surrogate mother, Evyatar came into the world on October 12.

Eric Hyett said that he was in Israel with his son, that he would not return him to the U.S. and that there was nothing the police could do about it because, at worst, he was guilty of first-degree custodial interference, something for which he would not be extradited.

According to Israel's daily newspaper - Haaretz - Welfare Minister Yitzhak Herzog (pictured) will promote a policy that would allow gay and lesbian couples to adopt children. Until now, those in same-sex relationships have been allowed to adopt their partner’s biological children, or to have an adoption registered in Israel after it was performed abroad. Couples have not been allowed to adopt a child who was not born to one of the two partners.

Israel news outlets report that the country's Welfare Ministry has decided to assist lesbians and gay men in adoption.

Until recently, law in Israel only allowed heterosexual couples to adopt. The unfortunate adjective "normative" was used in language to describe permissible households. As a result, same-sex and single-parent families have suffered legal discrimination.