JERUSALEM (AP) – An Israeli woman who illegally crossed into neighboring Syria and was sent back in a Russian-mediated agreement last month was charged in an Israeli court on Sunday, prosecutors said.
The prosecutor says the woman, whose name has not yet been released, left the country illegally and visited Syria in violation of Israeli law.
Additional details remained under gag order. Many details are censored by the Israeli army.
The terms of the agreement that secured her release last month remain bleak weeks later. The woman allegedly jumped the fence along the demilitarized zone separating the Israeli Golan Heights and Syria. In exchange for her release, Israel said it had released two Syrian shepherds who had entered Israeli territory.
According to Israeli media reports, Israel paid $ 1.2 million to supply the Syrian government with coronavirus vaccines as part of the agreement.
The released 25-year-old Israeli woman was sent back to Israel via Moscow and was questioned by the Israeli Internal Security Agency.
She hails from the predominantly ultra-Orthodox settlement of Modiin Illit on the West Bank and has previously tried to cross Israel’s borders with the Gaza Strip and Jordan, according to Israeli media. Her identity and motivation to move to Syria have not been disclosed.