Five days after the detention of two Israeli tourists for allegedly taking unauthorized photos of the presidential residence in Istanbul, Turkey made its first official comment on Tuesday.
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Interior Minister Süleyman Soylu spoke on the incident during a press conference, saying that the two were taken into custody because "they not only focused on the palace but also marked it."
The two Israelis, Natalie and Mordy Oknin, were arrested while taking photos at the observation deck of the Camlica radio and television tower on the Asian side of Istanbul last week. They were placed on remand for 20 days and on Sunday, they were granted access to Israeli consular officials and to their Israeli lawyer.
Soylu added that the security forces "intervened" and that "the state prosecution is now in charge of this matter." According to Soylu, "the case, which involves the crime of political-military espionage, will soon move to the court and it will have to rule on the matter."
The Oknins' attorney, Nir Yaslovitzh, met with Mordy in prison Monday. He was set to meet with his wife Natalie Tuesday.
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