Bloomberg News and a number of Israeli media announced that an Israeli journalist “infiltrated” the city of Mecca in Saudi Arabia.
The agency added that the journalist’s behavior “sparked controversy on social media and highlighted the sensitivities of closer ties between the two countries.”
Israel’s Channel 13 news reporter Gil Tamari posted a video of him driving through Mecca despite the city’s rules against non-Muslims entering the city, which is enforced by the checkpoint system.
The journalist also climbed Mount Arafat, where Muslims gather for the Hajj.
The agency said it appears Saudi authorities did not allow him to travel and did not punish him for it, as he published his report after returning to Israel.
Temari angered the Saudis by publishing a video from Mecca on social networks.
מק היא כי כ קד ל ל בכנ בכנ בכן בצמלמ כד כד כנ כנ למיס למין. Gil Tamri was the first Israeli reporter who was able to enter and leave the trip, and what happened when they suspected him? האקרטה מלאה – ארב בהמהדורה אשטריט@tamariegil pic.twitter.com/BzYKXP06P0
— News 13 (@newsisrael13) July 18, 2022
Some Israelis also criticized the visit and said that the visit does not respect local traditions.
In the report, Temari said that he had a “dream of visiting” Mecca, and that the person who agreed with him did not know that he was an Israeli journalist.
The “Times of Israel” newspaper said that Temari also took pictures of the Kaaba during his trip.
In a tweet on Tuesday, Temari apologized for his trip, saying that his trip was not intended to insult Muslims, but to “show the importance of Mecca and the beauty of religion.”
Saudi Arabia and Israel do not have diplomatic relations, but relations are gradually improving, and many Israeli journalists entered the kingdom using foreign passports during US President Joe Biden’s visit last week, according to Bloomberg.
Coinciding with the visit, Saudi Arabia announced that it would open its airspace to all airlines, including flights to and from Israel, a move that Israeli Prime Minister Yair Lapid described as the “first official step of normalization.” did
However, Saudi officials say there will be no normalization of relations until Israel resolves the conflict with the Palestinians, and the opening of airspace shows no signs of normalization.
Source: Lebanon Debate
