A Turkish Citizen Arrested after Visiting Israel

Umut Ataseven has always been interested in ancient history. In addition to his day job as a visa and passport officer at Turkish Airlines, he wrote history articles for the Turkish Independent newspaper, as well as a novel set in Ancient Egypt. One of his research interests is Ancient Israel – a significant presence in the ancient world.

Born and raised in Turkey, 29-year-old Umut enjoys travelling and seeing the world. For a long time, he had wanted to visit Israel, where history and archeology seamlessly blend in with the present. In fact, he had planned a trip to Israel for October 10, 2023. Of course, he had to postpone his trip after the Hamas attack on October 7^th.

Umut rescheduled his trip for April 2025. He enjoyed his week in Israel immensely, finally seeing the places and the archeological discoveries that he’d read and wrote so much about. During his trip, he took pictures and shared them on social media. One of the pictures was of himself on a Tel Aviv beach, holding an Israeli flag.

Upon his return to Turkey, Umut was fired from Turkish Airlines under a pretext. Shortly afterwards, he was arrested, held in custody overnight, and brought to court. He was accused of joining the IDF, committing genocide in Gaza, acquiring a dual Israeli citizenship, and inciting to terror. Anyone familiar with Israeli bureaucracy would find these accusations laughable – it takes much longer than a week to become an Israeli citizen or to join the IDF, even for those eligible by the Law of Return.

But for Umut, who is not Jewish, this was no laughing matter. He had to prove in Turkish court that the accusations were baseless. Eventually, the court had to admit that Umut was neither an Israeli citizen nor an IDF soldier. However, the charges of incitement remain. Umut was released with a travel ban and a court date set for September 26^th. He must appear at the local police station twice a week until then.

The incitement charges are not directly related to Umut’s trip to Israel. The prosecution discovered that on October 7^th, after hearing about the Hamas attack on Israel, Umut expressed criticism of Hamas on social media. He wrote, “Today, those who deem Hamas’s civilian massacres legitimate to defend Palestine may soon find the PKK’s civilian massacres legitimate. A note to history: the Palestinian state has effectively ended.”

In a dictatorship that is hostile towards Israel, it is impossible to predict the outcome of Umut’s trial.

In response, Umut received death threats from strangers on the Internet. He didn’t take them seriously, especially because he had posted under a fake name. But after his arrest, when his identity became known, Umut began to fear for his life.

Currently, Umut moved to a different location and barely leaves his home. His friends are afraid to contact him, and he is socially isolated. He is unable to work because no one is willing to hire him. Even the newspaper he used to write for refuses to print his articles or to give him a chance to explain himself. The editor only published a note stating that Umut’s previously printed articles were about history and not about politics.

Turkey is a dictatorship that has been turning increasingly hostile towards Israel. In response to the war in Gaza, Turkey severed its diplomatic ties with Israel. In the current political climate, it is impossible to predict the outcome of Umut’s trial.