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Ankara angry as Israel charges Turkish tourist with aiding Hamas

by  Reuters and Israel Hayom Staff
Published on  07-09-2018 00:00
Last modified: 12-22-2019 12:00
Ankara angry as Israel charges Turkish tourist with aiding Hamas

Turkish citizen Ebru Ozkan in court

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Israel charged a detained Turkish tourist on Sunday with helping smuggle money and packages to the Palestinian terrorist group Hamas.

The case has angered Ankara, drawing threats of retaliation.

Ebru Ozkan, 27, has been detained since June when she was apprehended trying to board a flight in Tel Aviv. One of the charges she faces is for smuggling five bottles of perfume, which her lawyer dismissed as trivial.

The case has strained already tense relations between Israel and Turkey, both U.S. allies, whose once-friendly ties have become acrimonious in recent years as Islamist President Tayyip Erdogan has solidified his power in Turkey.

The indictment against Ozkan, filed with an Israeli military court, includes two counts of acting in the service of a terrorist group, one count of transferring money to enemy agents, and one count of threatening public order.

If convicted, she could face several years in prison.

Though she is accused of smuggling a number of items, prosecutors put the most emphasis on the five bottles of perfume, which they contend were meant to be sold to raise money for Hamas.

In response to that charge, her lawyer Omara Khamaisi told Reuters outside the court: "Come on, really?"

"I think that in this case, the decision will ultimately be a brave one – to release her, I hope," the attorney said.

Khamaisi said further that Ozkan had been denied legal counsel for most of her detention, and that because her interrogation was not conducted in Turkish, her native language, her answers were distorted.

The indictment did not detail where the alleged offenses took place. Khamaisi said Ozkan had spent three days in Jerusalem during her visit.

There was no immediate comment from Hamas, which controls the Gaza Strip. Hamas is classified as a terrorist group by Israel and the West, but not by NATO-member Turkey.

Asked about Ozkan's case on Friday, Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu referred to her as "our sister" and accused Israel of "taking deterrent measures against our citizens traveling to Jerusalem."

"However, we will retaliate against this," He said, without elaborating. "Our relations will normalize when Israel stops its inhumane policies."

Turkey and Israel once had a strong security partnership. But the relationship deteriorated over the last decade, with Ankara condemning Israeli operations in Gaza. Israel contends it has a right to defend its citizens against Hamas hostility and rocket fire.

Muslims account for just a small percentage of incoming tourists to Israel. In 2016, the bulk of Muslim tourists, around 100,000, came from Turkey.

Israel Hayom reported last week that Turkey is seeking to re-establish its grip on east Jerusalem and the Temple Mount.

Turkey funnels resources and money into establishing a foothold on the  Temple Mount in Jerusalem. Its efforts to purchase influence there by way of donations to locals and assistance to businesses have also included demonstrations in east Jerusalem by Turkish "tourists" in recent years.

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