Foreign Ministry officials expressed hope the Israeli couple arrested for photographing Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's home, would soon be released from prison.
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Natalie and Mordy Oknin's attorney, Nir Yaslovitzh, met with Mordy in prison Monday. He was set to meet with his wife Natalie Tuesday.
Following the meeting, Yaslovitzh said the appeal against their extended remand would be summited by Friday. Meanwhile, Foreign Ministry officials said efforts to free the couple were ongoing, and that talks were held between high-ranking Israeli and Turkish officials and diplomats.
Yaslovitzh said it was thanks to the many efforts of the Prime Minister's Office, the Foreign Ministry, and the local consul that he had been able to meet with Mordy in prison.
Mordy "was very excited to see me, someone who spoke Hebrew. I gave him strength and explained his situation to him. I explained to him that an entire country is following his story and he wasn't even aware of what is going on in our country."
He said, "I explained to him the future steps I intend to take. I tried to instill in him a spirit of hope and faith that he would succeed in getting out of the place he is now in. He asked me a lot of not-so-simple questions like how long will this go on, how the Turkish system works, why he is under arrest in the first place, and why they [the Turks] don't understand I'm not a man who engages in espionage."
According to the attorney, "Mordy is staying in a separate room from the other prisoners, and I understand the rationale behind that and that is why I am happy they separated him so that they don't hurt him.
"Mordy was investigated once, laconically and briefly," Yaslovitzh said, noting he would ask for better conditions for Oknin while he in prison.
"I can say the meeting included quite a few tears, both his and my own. I promised him I would bring him back to Israel, and I intend to do just that," he said.
Following talks with the Turks, a consular visit with the couple was approved. While Israel is pressing for that meeting to be held as soon as possible, a date has yet to be set.
"The visit is a step in the right direction, but the goal is to bring them home," an official with knowledge of Israeli efforts to free the couple said.
Foreign Minister Yair Lapid is also personally involved in the issue, the official said.
Sima Duvdevani, the head of the Foreign Ministry's department for Israelis overseas, met with the couple's relatives in Modiin Monday to update them on recent developments in the case and the steps the ministry intended to take.
Prior to their arrest in Istanbul, the Oknins had shared a video to an Israeli friend of theirs who had expressed trepidation about traveling to Turkey. In the video, Natalie is heard saying: "You have nothing to fear. It's fun in Turkey, safe in Turkey. You speak Hebrew freely, travel and walk around, and they love us Israelis." Mordy said: "There are a lot of Israelis and a lot of delicious food and there are fun places to visit. Come and have fun. Everything is safe."
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