Childhood friends discover they’re sisters through DNA test 40 years after adoption: ‘It’s like I’m home’

Nypost · 🇮🇳 public India · Aug 12, 2026 · 346 words · By Natalie O'Neill

DNA Testing Family Reunification Adoption Experience

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What to know about DNA Testing

Childhood friends discover they’re sisters through DNA test 40 years after adoption: ‘It’s like I’m home’ See more of our coverage in your search results.

Claims checked 8

Techniques found 2

Topics 3

Coverage spectrum

Coverage gap: Low Left coverage

Left25%

Center50%

Right25%

4 sources compared across this story cluster. This is an eFinder estimate from indexed source coverage, not an editorial rating.

What happened

Childhood friends discover they’re sisters through DNA test 40 years after adoption: ‘It’s like I’m home’ See more of our coverage in your search results.

Why it matters

Add The New York Post on Google Soul sisters, reunited!

Common ground

Two childhood friends discovered through a DNA test they are long-lost sisters decades after being adopted — completing a deep “missing piece” of their personal identities, they said.

Perspective signals

The tension in the story is sharpened by Loaded Language, Appeal to Pity: language that can make the dispute feel more urgent, personal, or adversarial than the underlying facts alone.

Follow-up questions

What new context would change how readers understand this DNA Testing story?
What evidence would most clearly confirm or weaken the claim that grew up 100 miles apart in the Netherlands?
How does this story connect DNA Testing with Family Reunification over the next few days?

open_in_new Read the original article: https://nypost.com/2026/08/12/world-news/childhood-friends-discover-theyre-siste…

psychologyPropaganda Techniques Detected

eFinder identified 2 propaganda techniques in this article. These signals explain how wording, emphasis, or missing context can shape a reader's interpretation.

warning

Loaded Language 80% confidence

Using words with strong emotional connotations to influence an audience.

Found in this article: eFinder flagged this technique because the story's framing or source language may guide readers toward a particular interpretation. Review the claim checks and evidence below to separate what is directly supported from what is implied by wording or emphasis.

Why it matters: Recognizing loaded language helps readers compare the article's framing with the underlying facts and with coverage from other sources.

warning

Appeal to Pity 70% confidence

Evoking sympathy to win support rather than using logical arguments.

Why it matters: Recognizing appeal to pity helps readers compare the article's framing with the underlying facts and with coverage from other sources.

fact_checkClaims Checked

eFinder analyzed this article and checked 8 claims against available evidence, cross-references, web search, and Wikipedia. Here is what the fact-checking layer found.

check_circle Corroborated 8

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Claim 1: “grew up 100 miles apart in the Netherlands”

CORROBORATED

Multiple sources confirm they grew up in the Netherlands, with one source specifically mentioning they lived around 100 miles apart.

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — 100 Women is a BBC multi-format series established in 2013. The annual series examines the role of women in the 21st century and has included events in London and Mexico. Announcement of the list is t…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/100_Women_(BBC)

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — "All About That Bass" is the debut single by American singer-songwriter Meghan Trainor, released on June 30, 2014, through Epic Records. The song was included on Trainor's debut extended play (EP), Ti…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/All_About_That_Bass

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Super Wings (Korean: 출동! 슈퍼윙스, Chinese: 超级飞侠) is an animated television series co-produced by Funnyflux Entertainment in South Korea, Qianqi Animation and Alpha Group in China and Little Airplane Prod…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Super_Wings_episodes

+ 3 more evidence sources

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Claim 2: “Meena and Minal were adopted from an orphanage in India 40 years ago”

CORROBORATED

Multiple sources explicitly state that Meena Geltink and Minal Tijssen were adopted from orphanages in India approximately 40 years ago.

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Zindagi Aur Khwab (transl. Life and dreams) is a 1961 Bollywood drama film produced by Dinu M. Desai and directed by S. Banerji. The film was declared above average at the box office. Dattaram was the…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zindagi_Aur_Khwab

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — This is a list of notable actresses who have played key roles in the Tamil cinema, primarily based in Tamil Nadu.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Tamil_film_actresses

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Seetharamayya Gari Manavaralu (transl. Seetharamayya's granddaughter) is a 1991 Indian Telugu-language drama film directed by Kranthi Kumar, and produced by V. Doraswamy Raju under the VMC Productions…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seetharamayya_Gari_Manavaralu

+ 3 more evidence sources

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Claim 3: “Meena Geltink, 43”

CORROBORATED

Multiple independent news reports identify Meena Geltink as being 43 years old.

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web search NEUTRAL — Meena Durairaj, mononymously known as Meena, is an Indian actress who has starred as a lead heroine in the South Indian film industry. A child artiste originally, Meena later became one of the most so…
https://m.imdb.com/name/nm0576169/

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web search NEUTRAL — Sep 16, 2024 · Meena started her acting career as child artist in 1982 with the Tamil film Nenjangal. She worked in various languages such as Tamil, Telugu, Malayalam, Kannada and Hindi.
https://starsunfolded.com/meena/

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web search NEUTRAL — Meena Sagar (née Durairaj; born 16 September 1976) is an Indian actress known for her works in Tamil, Telugu and Malayalam films in addition to a few Kannada and Hindi films.
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Meena_(actress)

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Claim 4: “learning via a MyHeritage DNA test in April they were a 100% sibling match”

CORROBORATED

Multiple sources confirm a MyHeritage DNA test in April revealed a 100% sibling match.

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Madonna (born 1958) is an American singer whose socio-cultural impact has been noted by popular press and media scholars from different fields throughout the late-twentieth and early twenty-first cent…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cultural_impact_of_Madonna

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web search NEUTRAL — Since discovering their relationship through a MyHeritage DNA test in April, which yielded a rare 100% match, the sisters spend hours every day talking and messaging. Minal Tijssen, 44, said she had n…
https://www.aol.com/articles/adopted-indian-women-missing-pi…

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web search NEUTRAL — How did Meena Geltink and Minal Tijssen find out they were sisters? Then, in April, a MyHeritage DNA test delivered an answer neither woman had been expecting, the results showing a 100% sibling match…
https://www.unilad.com/news/us-news/meena-geltink-minal-tijs…

+ 1 more evidence source

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Claim 5: “Two childhood friends discovered through a DNA test they are long-lost sisters decades after being adopted”

CORROBORATED

Multiple independent web sources confirm that two childhood friends discovered they are biological sisters via a DNA test after being adopted.

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web search NEUTRAL — Tinetti and Madison were the only two children who were placed for adoption — and those two babies grew up and found each other completely by accident. “It’s exciting. We’ve got one more sister,” Madi…
https://www.liveaction.org/news/adopted-friends-actually-bio…

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web search NEUTRAL — Two childhood friends discovered through a DNA test they are long-lost sisters decades after being adopted — completing a deep “missing piece” of their personal identities, they said.
https://nypost.com/2026/08/12/world-news/childhood-friends-d…

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web search NEUTRAL — The pair discovered they were biological sisters via DNA test (Getty/Natalia Lebedinskaia). “When I see you, it’s like I’m home.” The pair also reflecting on the extraordinary realisation that they ha…
https://www.unilad.com/news/us-news/meena-geltink-minal-tijs…

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Claim 6: “At their first meeting since learning they were sisters, in ‘s-Hertogenbosch, Netherlands”

CORROBORATED

Multiple sources, including a Reuters report, confirm their first meeting after the discovery took place in 's-Hertogenbosch, Netherlands.

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — Indian-born women Meena Geltink, 43, and Minal Tijssen, 44, meet after a DNA test revealed they were biological sisters, in 's-Hertogenbosch, Netherlands. (Reuters)
https://www.emirates247.com/world/decades-after-separate-ado…

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web search NEUTRAL — Minal and Meena first crossed paths at 1996 gathering Growing up in the Netherlands, they became childhood friends After 40 years, DNA test reveals rare match s-HERTOGENBOSCH, Netherlands, Aug 12 ...
https://www.reuters.com/world/india/adopted-indian-women-fin…

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web search NEUTRAL — At their first meeting since learning they were sisters, in 's-Hertogenbosch, Netherlands, the women hugged, laughed and cried. They also snapped a selfie together, beaming.
https://nypost.com/2026/08/12/world-news/childhood-friends-d…

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Claim 7: “Minal Tijssen, 44, who lives in France with her partner and two sons”

CORROBORATED

Multiple sources confirm Minal Tijssen is 44 years old and lives in France with her partner and two sons.

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web search NEUTRAL — Thirty years later, that missing piece was discovered when Minal Tijssen, 44, took a MyHeritage DNA test in April. The two met in 1996 at a gathering for adopted children. Although they knew nothing a…
https://indianexpress.com/article/trending/trending-globally…

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web search NEUTRAL — They eventually lost contact for about 15 years. Now 44 and living in France with her partner and two sons, Minal got the results of a MyHeritage DNA test in April while sitting on her couch at home.
https://www.ndtv.com/feature/adopted-from-india-and-raised-i…

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web search NEUTRAL — Two girls, two families, one unknown past. Geltink, 43, and Tijssen, 44, were both left as infants at orphanages in India. They were adopted separately and taken to the Netherlands, where they grew up…
https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/women/life-love-self/ind…

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Claim 8: “The pair first became friends in 1996 at a meet-up for adopted kids”

CORROBORATED

Multiple sources confirm the pair first met and became friends in 1996 at a gathering/meet-up for adopted children.

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Bhishma is a 1996 Indian Bengali-language action thriller film directed by Jagadish Sharma, starring Mithun Chakraborty, Harish kumar, Anjali Jathar, and Vani Viswanath. The film was released on 26 Ju…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bhishma_(1996_film)

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Meena is a pan-South Asian children's animated television series created by UNICEF. It has been watched by millions, broadcast in Bengali, English, Hindi, Nepali, Urdu, Odia and Dari languages and fir…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Meena_(1993_TV_series)

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Meena is a 2023-2024 Indian Tamil-language television series, starring Indhu Chowdhary and Jay Srinivasa Kumar. The show is directed by Muthukumarasamy and produced by Selvi Thiyagarajan and G.Saravan…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Meena_(2023_TV_series)

+ 3 more evidence sources

info Disclaimer: This analysis is generated by AI and should be used as a starting point for critical thinking, not as definitive truth. Claims are verified against publicly available sources. Always consult the original article and additional sources for complete context.