Report: Guinness World Records Declines Israeli Entry, Citing Policy Blocking Submissions From Israel

JERUSALEM — Guinness World Records has declined to review an Israeli organization’s attempt to certify a major medical milestone, saying it is not currently accepting submissions from Israel or the Palestinian territories, according to a report by N12.

Matnat Chaim, a nonprofit that promotes altruistic kidney donation, sought recognition for reaching 2,000 voluntary kidney donors — a figure medical experts consider unprecedented worldwide. The group began the application process years ago, paid registration fees, and organized a planned gathering of all donors at Jerusalem’s Binyanei Ha’uma to document the achievement for Guinness.

But the effort stalled when the organization received an email from Guinness stating it was not processing record requests from the region. No explanation was provided, N12 reported.

The decision means the milestone, widely regarded by transplant specialists as a global model of altruistic donation, will not appear in the upcoming edition of the record book.

Rabbanit Rachel Heber, president of Matnat Chaim and an Israel Prize laureate, told N12 the move is “unacceptable,” noting Israel’s leadership in living kidney donations.

She said the group remains proud of the 2,000 donors who saved lives of people they did not know and intends to continue its work.

Guinness World Records has not publicly commented on the policy or indicated whether it may be reversed.