Efforts to bring home American children abducted to overseas destinations and wrongfully held, will be the topic of a hearing held Thursday by Congressman Chris Smith (NJ-04), Chairman of the House congressional panel that oversees human rights.

    Testifying before the subcommittee will be Iraqi War veteran Marine Sgt. Mike Elias and other “left behind” parents of American children abducted to India, Japan, Egypt and Brazil (just a few of the thousands of U.S. kids held wrongfully overseas). 

    The title of the hearing is “Resolving International Parental Child Abductions to Non-Hague Convention Countries,” which will be held before the Subcommittee on Africa, Global Health, Global Human Rights, and International Organizations chaired by Smith.

Who:   Chairman Smith, and other members of the subcommittee, and witnesses:

• The Honorable Susan Jacobs, Special Advisor for Children's Issues, Bureau of Consular Affairs, U.S. Department of State
• Patricia Apy, attorney specializing in international abduction cases, Paras, Apy & Reiss, P.C.
• Bindu Philips, mother of children abducted to India
• Colin Bower, father of children abducted to Egypt
• Michael Elias, father of children abducted to Japan
• David Goldman, father of child abducted to Brazil, brought back to U.S. after 5 years

When:             Thursday, May 9 at 10 a.m.

Where:            Rayburn House Office Building, Room 2172