Maya Reiten, an Israeli woman who was arrested last month for cannabis possession in Belarus, has been freed from custody and is on her way to Israel, according to a joint statement by Foreign Minister Yair Lapid and Finance Minister Avigdor Liberman on Thursday.

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"Maya Reiten was released from prison in Belarus and is making her way to Israel with her brother," Lapid said and thanked President Isaac Herzog for helping to bring the woman back.
Lieberman and other officials from the Foreign Ministry were also involved in the efforts.

Reiten, a lawyer, was arrested on Nov. 4 at an airport in Minsk after authorities discovered 2.5 grams of cannabis in her luggage even though she has medical authorization to use the drug. Marijuana is illegal in the Eastern European country and being found in possession of it could potentially carry a five-year prison sentence.

The Israeli woman was permitted to return after paying a $2,500 fine.

Israeli programmer Dmitry (Daniel) Plashinskiy remains in custody in Belarus after he was arrested on Dec. 8 for allegedly following the opposition's Telegram pages that have been outlawed by President Alexander Lukashenko. Plashinskiy also has Belarusian citizenship.

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Issachar's mother, Yaffa, met her daughter at the penitentiary on Monday.

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"I'm tired and exhausted," Issachar told her mother. "I can't anymore. I just want to get out of this prison, please."

Naama was sentenced by a Russian court to 7.5 years in prison after 9.5 grams of cannabis were found in her baggage during her layover at a Moscow airport earlier this year.

But her situation became more complicated as reports emerged that Putin requested a swap deal involving Naama and Russian hacker Alexei Borkov, who has been detained in Israel for the past four years and is wanted by the United States for suspected cyber offenses.

In August, Israel's Supreme Court ruled Borkov extraditable to the US, in spite of his request that he be extradited to Moscow rather than Washington.

Borkov was arrested at Israel's Ben-Gurion International Airport on Dec. 13, 2015, at the request of the American government.

Israeli newspaper Globes said Borkov had been indicted in 2015 by the state of Virginia for running an internet credit card scam and was arrested in December that year at the Israeli international airport where he arrived as a tourist.

"I have been held in an Israeli jail for four years now because of political games," Borkov told Israel's Channel 13 News in a telephone interview on Sunday. He also said that he had no links to the Russian government or intelligence agencies.

Netanyahu and Putin reportedly discussed the proposed prisoner exchange deal at a meeting in Sochi on Sept. 12, but Netanyahu explained that Israel could not do what Russia wanted.

"The authorities in Israel have been active regarding Issachar throughout her detention. Israel has delivered a clear message: The punishment being demanded by the Russian prosecutor is disproportionate and does not fit the nature of the offense being attributed to Issachar," a statement issued by the Prime Minister's Office on Friday read.

Netanyahu has appeared to rule out any such exchange, saying Israel's Supreme Court had approved Borkov's extradition to the United States.

Israeli and US officials would not disclose further details of Borkov's suspected crimes and his lawyer did not respond to a request for comment.

To be implemented, Borkov's extradition must be formally approved by Israel's justice minister, Amir Ohana, who on Saturday said he would decide whether to do so within days and hinted that he might weigh a rival Russian extradition request.

Such a request had been filed by Russia, Ohana told Israel's Channel 13 News, but it was "rather thin in terms of material."

"In order to decide that he is extraditable to Russia, a court needs to rule that he is extraditable. That has not yet happened," Ohana said.

On Tuesday, Israeli news site Ynet reported that Ohana was expected to okay Borkov's extradition to the US.

The US Embassy in Israel has not commented on the Borkov or Issachar case.

President Reuven Rivlin also asked Putin to pardon Issachar.

In a letter to Putin on Sunday, Rivlin said Issachar had "made a grave mistake and has admitted her crime," and asked the Russian leader for his "personal intervention to grant her an extraordinary pardon."

The letter, published on Rivlin's Twitter account, noted recent Russian help in locating the remains of Israeli soldier Zachary Baumel, killed by Syrian forces in a 1982 battle in Lebanon.

"The Jewish People and State of Israel are grateful for your sensitivity to human life," Rivlin wrote to Putin.

Today, I appealed to President Putin of Russia, as a friend of the Jewish People and of the State of Israel, regarding Naama Issachar. Although Naama has made a grave mistake and admitted it, such a long sentence could have a terrible impact on her life. @KremlinRussia_E pic.twitter.com/9NxbPC6RrP

— Reuven Rivlin (@PresidentRuvi) 13 באוקטובר 2019

Meanwhile, former Prisoner of Zion and Jewish Agency Chairman Natan Sharansky, who was imprisoned for 13 years in the former Soviet Union, criticized Russia over the current affair involving Issachar.

"This is a cynical exploitation of a civilian for extortion purposes," he told Israel Hayom. "She is a hostage of the Russian regime. Good for her keeping her spirits up. It's very important because you need all the inner fortitude possible to deal with it."

As for Issachar's disproportionate 7.5-year prison sentence, Sharansky said it was levied "to prevent the extradition of the hacker [Borkov] that Israel should extradite to America. They looked for leverage. It's obvious that they took her hostage. Russia is making an effort to build itself as a connection hub for travelers. Travelers should think twice before using connection flights from Moscow to save a few hundred dollars."

Parts of this article were originally published by i24NEWS.

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It is believed that the heavy punishment for Issachar's drug offense was designed to pressure Israel into not handing cybercriminal Alexei Borkov, who is detained in Israel, over to the Americans. Borkov was arrested while visiting Israel in 2015 after Israeli authorities saw an Interpol alert. He is wanted in the US on suspicion of hacking US credit card databases and sharing the details.

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Former Justice Minister Ayelet Shaked signed an order to extradite Borkov to the US. The process required a court review, then a follow-up extradition order.

According to reports, the Russians proposed a prisoner swap this past summer, which Israel rejected due to legal difficulties and a disinclination to refuse an American extradition request.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Russian President Vladimir Putin reportedly discussed the proposed prisoner exchange deal at a meeting in Sochi on Sept. 12, but Netanyahu explained that Israel could not do what Russia wanted.

"The authorities in Israel have been active regarding Issachar throughout her detention. Israel has delivered a clear message: The punishment being demanded by the Russian prosecutor is disproportionate and does not fit the nature of the offense being attributed to Issachar," a statement issued by the Prime Minister's Office on Friday read.

"Prime Minister Netanyahu requested a commuting of the sentence and an easing of the terms of Naama's detention. To our regret, the Russian prosecution has not yet accepted these requests," the statement continued.

On Saturday, it appeared likely that Israel would buck the Russian pressure and extradite Borkov to the US.

Sources in the legal system told Israel Hayom that Borkov's request to be returned to Russia was "thin and baseless from a legal perspective." The same sources also said that Israel and the US had long been cooperating on the extradition of criminals held in either country and "it was unreasonable to ruin those ties in the current circumstances."

Meanwhile, Israel Hayom has also learned that Russia's ambassador to Israel, Anatoly Viktorov, was summoned to the Foreign Ministry to clarify developments. During the meeting, Viktorov was informed of Israel's displeasure at how Russian authorities were treating Issachar.

In April, Issachar, 26, was caught by Moscow airport security staff with 9.5 grams of cannabis in one of her suitcases. She was jailed for approximately six months and on Friday a Russian court sentenced her to 7.5 years in prison.

Issachar's relatives gave interviews on Friday and expressed their horror at the young woman being held as a bargaining chip. Issachar's mother, Yaffa, told Israel Hayom: "I'm horrified. It was a sham trial. It was just a big show. It's not [about] nine grams of drugs, it's about a battle between two countries, and look how long my daughter will have to pay the price."

Yisrael, Issachar's uncle, said after her sentence was announced, "After the developments of the past few hours, we aren't surprised at the punishment. Now we know who the enemy is. Until now we didn't know why the case got so complicated.

"Now we know why and it will be easier for us. Thus far, we've focused on the amount of drugs she supposedly had, but now everyone understands that that wasn't the issue. Everything is out in the open. The girl is a hostage," the worried uncle said.

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Israeli companies – befitting from a favorable climate and expertise in medical and agricultural technologies – are among the world's biggest producers of medical cannabis.

The Finance and Health ministries' estimate exports could bring in about $1 billion a year – but some MKs have up to now stopped Israeli-grown cannabis going abroad, fearing more cultivation could push more drugs onto the streets at home.

Things changed when Likud MK Yoav Kisch, chairman of Knesset's Internal Affairs and Environment Committee, submitted a bill to allow exports that imposed tougher regulations on exporters and threatened jail terms and hefty fines for violations.

That passed its first of three votes in parliament last week and is back with Kisch's committee for revisions. "I aim to finish the legislation by the end of the year," Kisch said.

"We believe it's medicine and it's important. It's a big potential for Israeli farmers and the economy," added Kisch, who estimates the regulation could boost tax income by 1 billion shekels ($268 million) a year.

There are currently eight cultivating companies in Israel, many of which have resorted to opening farms abroad to get into the international market. The government says there have been many requests form business owners awaiting authorization.

Cannbit, a newcomer which has a farm in southern Israel and this week signed a deal with local medical cannabis supplier Tikun Olam, said it was looking into opening a farm in Portugal if the new regulations do not go through.

"If there will be exports from Israel there is less tendency for investments in other places," said CEO Yaron Razon.

Another Israeli cannabis grower, Together, has already started up farms in Europe after signing a $300 million contract to supply cannabis products to a Canadian company.

"Exporting from Israel can have a big impact on the industry and economy," said Alex Rabinovitch, controlling shareholder of InterCure, which recently bought medical cannabis firm Canndoc.

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