Turkey announced on Monday that it would allow officials from the Israeli Consulate General in Istanbul to visit the Israeli couple that had been arrested late last Thursday night after taking photographs of President Tayyip Erdogan's residence in Istanbul from the Camlica Tower, a telecommunications tower with observation decks.
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Now that the necessary authorization has been given, the Israeli Foreign Ministry is actively working on holding the consular visit as the two countries continue to engage on the matter.
"The efforts to release the couple continues at all levels," the Foreign Ministry said.
The couple, both in their 40s, was visiting Turkey to celebrate a birthday and when they did not return to Israel on Tuesday as planned, family members raised the alarm.
According to a report, the couple filmed Erdogan's house and sent it to a Whatsapp group, saying it was "such a nice house." It is illegal in Turkey to photograph or film the president's residence although many do so from the Camlica Tower's observation deck.
While it was first believed that the two would be swiftly expelled from Turkey, an Istanbul court on Friday ordered they be remanded for an additional 20 days, pending trial for "political and military espionage."
The defendants' lawyer, Nir Yaslovizh, who arrived in Istanbul on Friday, called the accusations "preposterous" and blasted the court's "bizarre and unacceptable" remand order.
"They are not spies," he stressed.
Foreign Minister Yair Lapid issued a statement over the weekend officially denying that the couple was linked to "any Israeli security agency." This sentiment was echoed by Prime Minister Naftali Bennett, who reiterated in a statement that "the couple do not work for any Israeli agency."
"They are two innocent citizens who accidentally ended up in a complex situation," Bennett added.
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