Russia has brokered an unusual prisoner exchange that saw Syria release an Israeli woman who crossed into the country on Thursday, Israeli officials say.
The whole picture: The two weeks before the agreement include a call between Russian President Vladimir Putin and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for the capture of two Syrian shepherds by Israel as bargaining chips, and the refusal of a Syrian prisoner to leave prison. as part of the agreement. .
The back story: An Israeli woman in her 20s crossed into the Golan Heights two weeks ago via Syria, entered a town and started talking to local people.
- Someone apparently warned the Syrian army that an Israeli had wandered into the town because she had been arrested and interrogated by Syrian intelligence officials.
- The Syrians initially suspected she was a spy, as well as Israeli officials who heard that an Israeli woman had been captured. But it soon became clear that she was a citizen.
- The Syrians notified Russian troops in Syria, which informed the Israelites of the full situation. At that point, the Israelis made it clear that they considered it a humanitarian issue and asked the Russians to reach an agreement.
The Syrians quickly agreed to the idea of a prisoner exchange, but the process was dragged on for two weeks due to a series of complications.
- The Russians initially tried to broaden the talks and asked Israel to curb their airstrikes in Syria on the grounds that it is more difficult to transport humanitarian aid. In addition to Netanyahu’s call with Putin, the Israeli defense and foreign ministers also spoke to their Russian counterparts.
- An agreement has finally been reached: Israel will release two Syrians convicted of terrorism-related offenses and provide Syria with COVID-19 assistance.
- On Wednesday, Israeli national security adviser Meir Ben-Shabbat traveled to Moscow, where the Israeli woman had already been taken. An Israeli doctor considers her healthy and ready to travel.
But then there was a problem. One of the detainees said he would rather stay in an Israeli prison for fourteen years than be deported to Syria, Israeli officials say.
- However, Israeli soldiers have already been sent to the buffer zone between Israel and Syria in search of bargaining chips. They waited for two shepherds to turn into an Israeli enclave and captured them.
- Syria finally agreed to exchange the Israeli woman for the shepherds. They were released Thursday and a plane left Israel to bring the woman home.
Behind the scenes: The incident has been kept under strict order for the past two weeks due to concerns that any press reports could sabotage the deal.
- On Tuesday, the Israeli cabinet urgently convened under a veil of secrecy. The ministers themselves did not know what it was about before arriving at the Prime Minister’s office and were asked to sign non-disclosure forms.
- The Israeli military censor banned Israeli media from reporting any details about the cabinet meeting, other than the fact that it took place, which led to speculation across the country about what happened.
Between the lines: It is still unclear what led to the Israeli citizen having to cross the border.
- Israeli officials say she studied Arabic and previously stopped crossing the border fence into Gaza.
- “She looks like a person in need of adventure,” an Israeli official told me.
What’s next: She is expected to be questioned by Israel’s security services to determine why she traveled to Syria.