Breaking Update
55,000 Toddlers in Jerusalem in Unauthorized Daycare, Lawmakers Told
55,000 Jerusalem toddlers in unauthorized daycares, lawmakers told after 2 infants died in an unlicensed facility.
Jerusalem, 26 January, 2026 (TPS-IL) — More than 55,000 Jerusalem children under the age of three are in unsupervised daycare frameworks, Knesset lawmakers were told on Monday.
The figures were presented during a joint session of the Knesset Education, Welfare, and Children’s Rights Committees, which convened after last week’s deadly incident at an unlicensed Jerusalem daycare.
Four-month-old Leah Goloventzitz and six-month-old Aharon Katz died, and 53 other infants were injured, in what police describe as severe overcrowding, with some children sleeping on mattresses under a bathroom toilet. Authorities suspect heat exhaustion and dehydration caused by a faulty heating system led to the deaths.
Only 21% of Jerusalem’s toddlers attend supervised daycare, far below the national average.
Lawmakers were told that an additional 39,000 toddlers are in unauthorized daycare in Tel Aviv, Beit Shemesh, Bnei Brak and Rahat.
