Held without food, water: At least 40 Israelis detained at Moscow airport for five hours – Here’s why

At least 40 Israeli nationals were detained at a Moscow airport after they arrived from Tel Aviv on Sunday (Apr 19). The incident, which was first reported by Russian media, was later confirmed by the Israeli Foreign Ministry. Reportedly, the Israelis who were interrogated over suspected involvement in the Iran war were held for over five hours without access to food, water, or restrooms. They were later released following intervention from Israeli authorities.

According to The Times of Israel, Security forces at Domodedovo Airport stressed to the detainees that Iran is Russia’s ally and anyone who is an enemy of Iran is “our enemy as well”.

The Israeli Foreign Ministry said that when it was informed of the incident, it acted with both the foreign ministry in Moscow and with the Russian embassy in Israel on the direction of Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar. Following the intervention, the incident was resolved the entry of Israelis was approved. It added that the conduct by Russia was “completely unacceptable” and that the incident was being treated with “great seriousness”.

“Following this intervention, the incident was resolved, and the Israelis’ entry was approved. The Russians were made to understand that this conduct is completely unacceptable, and Israel views the incident with great seriousness,” the ministry said.

Among those detained were some dual citizens and Israelis without Russian passports. They were reported to have been told to unlock their phones, and when they refused, they were told to turn them off, according to Russian outlet Mediazone.

The report added that the Israeli citizens were only released after they signed documents stressing the “inadmissibility of violating the law” and warning against such violations.

In another incident in 2019, several Israelis were denied entry into Russia at the Domodedovo Airport after they engaged in a spat over a bilateral visa agreement. They were eventually permitted to continue their journey.

The incident comes amid tensions in West Asia, which began on February 28 when the US and Israeli military launched strikes on Iran, killing Iran’s supreme leader Ali Khamenei and several other top Iranian officials. The operation was named ‘Epic Fury’ by the US and ‘Lion’s Roar’ by Israel. The attacks came amid heightened tensions between Washington and Tehran and ongoing talks over Iran’s nuclear program. In retaliation, Iran launched attacks on Israel and US military bases in the Gulf region.

While the US and Iran reached a fragile ceasefire, which is set to reach its 10-day deadline on Wednesday (Apr 22), the fate of the situation remains uncertain amid no confirmation of peace talks in Islamabad.

Disclaimer: WION takes utmost care to accurately and responsibly report ongoing conflicts in West Asia involving Israel, Iran, the US, Gulf nations and non-state actors like Hezbollah, Hamas, Houthis, Islamic State, and others. Claims and counterclaims, disinformation and misinformation are being made online and offline. Given this context, WION cannot independently verify the authenticity of all statements, social media posts, photos and videos.