Rabbi in custody wins right to kosher food
London rabbi arrested over circumcision in Dublin takes prison to High Court
Jenni Frazer is a freelance journalist
A rabbi detained after being accused of carrying out an illegal circumcision in Dublin has won the right to be given kosher food after taking the Irish prison service to court over the terms of his custody in Cloverhill Prison.
Rabbi Jonathan Abraham, 47, who has 15 years’ experience as a mohel, was arrested two weeks ago in a private home in the Irish capital, where he was said to be carrying out a circumcision. He is accused of performing the operation without having local certification and faces a maximum of five years in prison if found guilty.
But when he was detained in custody after being ruled a flight risk back home to London, Rabbi Abraham complained that his human rights were being breached — because he was not permitted to pray using his tefillin, and was not provided with kosher food.
In a High Court hearing, Ms Justice Nuala Jackson ruled in favour of the rabbi and said that the prison authorities had got it wrong. She observed that the failure to provide Rabbi Abraham with kosher food had “caused him considerable and understandable stress and seemed to come from a lack of understanding by the prison services to provide him with food in accordance with his religious beliefs”.
Cloverhill has since taken steps to allow Rabbi Abraham to use his tefillin and to obtain kosher food for him. However, the judge found that the conditions of the detention did not require the rabbi to be released from custody.
The rabbi, she said, was a dedicated and committed member of the Jewish faith and his devotion had impressed the court.
The judge said that given the circumstances of the case and in light of her findings, she was prepared to direct the Irish State to pay 50 per cent of the rabbi’s legal costs.
Ireland’s chief rabbi, Yoni Wieder, who gave evidence in court, has made several representations to the prison authorities about the importance of providing kosher food to Rabbi Abraham, but he said that prior to the High Court ruling, this had not been done.
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