The REAL Reason Israel Restricts DNA Tests

Why does Israel heavily restrict DNA testing, even while leading the world in genetic research and housing one of the biggest ancestry companies? Viral posts claim the rules are hiding a secret about Jewish origins, but the reality leads somewhere far more unexpected. From disputed paternity cases to questions of religion and identity, Israel’s DNA restrictions reveal a complicated clash between ancient traditions and modern science. 0:00 Intro 0:56 What DNA tests Israel allows 2:06 Why home DNA tests are restricted 3:29 Why courts block some paternity tests 4:06 Ancient Jewish law meets modern science 6:02 How DNA can affect marriage 6:52 How Israelis access DNA tests 7:48 What Jewish DNA actually shows Sources Agranat-Tamir, Lily, et al. "The Genomic History of the Bronze Age Southern Levant." Cell, vol. 181, no. 5, 28 May 2020, pp. 1146–1157, doi:10.1016/j.cell.2020.04.024. Behar, D.M., Saag, L., Karmin, M. et al. "The genetic variation in the R1a clade among the Ashkenazi Levites’ Y chromosome." Sci Rep 7, 14969 (2017). Wexler, Jeffrey D. "2017 Behar Paper on R1a-Y2619 Ashkenazi Levites." Levite DNA, sites.google.com/site/levitedna/origins/2017-behar-paper. "Who were the Canaanites? New insight from 73 ancient genomes." ScienceDaily, May 28, 2020. Subscribe and turn on your notifications so you don’t miss future uploads! https://www.youtube.com/UNPACKED?sub_confirmation=1 Recommended video – The Secret Origins of Ashkenazi Jews https://youtu.be/Rnr1RbKWpXQ?si=xSbWfgoa2bBTmWwo We have merch! – http://shop.Unpacked.media/?utm_medium=youtube&utm_source… Let’s connect: Website — https://www.Unpacked.media Instagram — /unpackedmedia Twitter — /unpackedmedia TikTok — /unpackedmedia Facebook — /unpackedmedia ------ Executive Producers: Michael Steinhardt Co-Executive Producers: Marc Shmuel Levine Iris & Shalom Maidenbaum Gold Level: The Steinhardt Foundation for Jewish Life ----------- Translation credits: Portuguese: Saymon Pires About Explainers: From ancient Jewish traditions to the modern State of Israel, we explain it all. Diving into anything and everything related to Jewish culture, history, and even religion. Understand Jewish holidays, Israeli politics, Jewish diasporic communities, and more. Learn about Judaism in pop culture, debunking myths about Jews, and explore obscure Israeli landmarks. We’re asking questions as basic as “What is the Talmud?”, and as obscure as “How did hip-hop boost Kosher wine sales?”, and everything in between. About Unpacked: We provide nuanced insights by unpacking all things Jewish. People are complex and complicated — yet we’re constantly being pushed to oversimplify our world. At Unpacked we know that being complex makes us more interesting. Because of this, we break the world down with nuance and insight to drive your curiosity and challenge your thinking. #israel #dna #judaism