An Israeli mother and daughter who became the focus of a nationwide media frenzy following a mysterious series of international travels are pleading with the producers of a popular Israeli television satire program not to turn their ordeal into entertainment.
Mali and Liel Yahalomi, whose disappearance and subsequent movements across several countries generated widespread headlines, have asked the producers of Channel 12’s Eretz Nehederet not to feature them in a comedy sketch.
The request came after a promotional video for the show’s new season, scheduled to premiere Tuesday evening, featured impersonations of the mother and daughter by performers Yaniv Biton and Gitit Fisher.
The sketch reportedly portrays Israelis returning from abroad to vote in the upcoming elections.
However, the Yahalomis say their experience has been anything but amusing.
The mother and daughter first attracted national attention after disappearing in Vienna. They were subsequently located in Argentina before once again dropping out of public view.
More recently, reports circulated that they had been arrested in Namibia, but those claims proved incorrect. Hours later, it emerged that they were actually returning to Israel from Athens.
The unusual sequence of events has kept the pair in the Israeli headlines since August.
Now, through their attorney, Shanit Ben Shushan, they are asking for privacy.
“We are going through the hardest time of our lives, after experiencing extremely difficult days,” Mali and Liel said in a statement.
“We never asked for this publicity and never wanted to cause concern. Right now, we are asking to rebuild our lives, and we are requesting a little compassion, time, and quiet to get through the difficult days ahead. When we feel mentally capable of doing so, we will share our story.”
Their attorney sent a letter to the show’s production team titled “A Sensitive Request Regarding Mali and Liel Yahalomi.”
In the letter, Ben Shushan urged the producers not to turn the family’s experience into a comedy routine.
“I am approaching you with a request that, in my view, concerns matters of life and soul,” she wrote. “I am pleading with you in the strongest possible terms: Do not turn their story into a sketch, and do not give it additional exposure through the program.”
The attorney emphasized that behind the headlines are two women who have experienced significant emotional distress.
“We do not know what the consequences of additional public exposure might be,” she wrote. “Precisely now, as they are trying to return to their lives, our responsibility is not to add to their difficulties or turn their personal struggles into entertainment.”
She concluded with a direct appeal to the show’s creators.
“There are moments when humor must give way to humanity. There are stories that should not be touched, not because laughter is forbidden, but because one must know when to stop.”
It was not immediately clear whether the show’s producers would honor the request or proceed with the planned sketch.
