Belgium rejects baby name Jerusalem

Brussels City Hall has refused to register the birth of a baby because of its name. The Israeli parents, Alinadav and Hagar Hyman, who have been living and working in the city for three years, wanted to name their daughter Alma Jerusalem, after their home country's capital. The name Jerusalem, however, does not appear on the list of approved names for newborn children in Belgium. At first Alindav was not even sure if the clerk was serious, since next to him in line was a Finnish man who was allowed to register his baby with a name that was 25 characters long. But then the clerk offered a compromise: If the couple could obtain a letter from the Israeli embassy confirming that Jerusalem is a valid name, then Brussels would issue a Belgian birth certificate for the baby.