agency said BloombergAnd a number of Israeli media outlets said an Israeli journalist “infiltrated” the city of Mecca in Saudi Arabia.
The agency added that the journalist’s behavior “provoked controversy on social media and clarified the sensitivities of closer relations between the two countries.”
Israeli Channel 13 news journalist Gil Tamari posted a video of him driving through Mecca, despite rules banning non-Muslims from entering the city, which is imposed by a system of checkpoints.
The journalist also climbed Mount Arafat, where Muslims gather during the Hajj.
The agency said that it appears that the Saudi authorities did not authorize his trip, nor did they punish him for it, as he published his report after his return to Israel.
And spread my exercises video From Mecca on social media, which sparked anger among Saudis.
Mecca is the holiest city for Islam and is surrounded by sophisticated cameras to prevent non-Muslims from entering. Gil Tamari was the first Israeli reporter who managed to get in and out on a journey in the city. And what happened when they suspected him? The full article – tonight in the main edition@tamarygil pic.twitter.com/BzYKXP06P0
— News 13 (@newsisrael13) July 18, 2022
Some Israelis have also criticized the visit, saying it does not respect local traditions.
In the report, Tamari said he was “dreaming” of visiting Mecca, and that the person who agreed to take him did not know he was an Israeli journalist.
newspaper said “The times of Israel“The images of the Kaaba are also practiced during his journey.
In a tweet on Tuesday, Tamari, who apologized for his trip, said his visit was not intended to offend Muslims, but rather 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, according to Bloomberg, and many Israeli journalists entered the kingdom using foreign passports during US President Joe Biden’s visit last week.
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 a “first official normalization step.”
However, Saudi officials say that any normalization of relations will not occur until Israel resolves its conflict with the Palestinians, and that the opening of airspace does not reflect signs of normalization.