Syria is on the list of enemy states, and quite a few Israeli-Arabs who have crossed into Israel's neighbor and returned were indicted for their actions.
By JERUSALEM POST STAFFAn old military fort on the Syrian border is seen, with snow-covered Mount Hermon in the background.(photo credit: SETH J. FRANTZMAN)
The young Israeli woman who crossed the border into Syria last month and was returned in a prisoner swap mediated by Russia was charged on Sunday for allegedly violating state security, Israeli media reported.The woman, whose name is still banned from publication, slammed the decision.“In contrast to past cases in which there was a violation of state security and no indictment was filed against people who crossed the border, in this case, it is clear to all that the young woman did not harm anyone and had no intention of harming state security,”attorneys Anat Yaari and Iyad Azzam from the Public Defender’s Office, who represent the woman, said in a statement after the indictment. “It is therefore very puzzling that precisely against a young woman with no criminal record who comes from a complex background they chose to file an indictment.”Israeli law prohibits citizens from traveling to enemy states, prohibits citizens of enemy states from crossing into Israel and prohibits Israelis from doing business with enemy states without special government permission.Syria is on the list of enemy states, and numerous Arab-Israelis who have crossed into Syria and returned over the years have been indicted for doing so. The young woman reportedly claimed to have crossed the border “by mistake” and was immediately arrested, the Syrian state news agency reported but an IDF investigation revealed that she had crossed near Mount Hermon at a part of the border where there is no fence. She had apparently tried crossing in the past into the Gaza Strip but was stopped by IDF troops. Her Facebook page shows her spending time with Palestinian families in the West Bank.In exchange for her return, Israel released two shepherds who had crossed into Israel and also reportedly agreed to buy over a million dollars worth of Russian vaccines for Syria. The Shin Bet (Israel Security Agency) questioned the woman and then released her to the police, apparently believing there had been no intent to commit terrorist activity or to spy. She was merely seeking adventures as part of her ideological goal of visiting Arabs in different places to build bridges, the Shin Bet determined.Yonah Jeremy Bob contributed to this report.
