Israeli who crossed into Lebanon to return Sunday

The Israeli citizen who crossed the Lebanese border Wednesday is expected to be transferred Sunday back to Israel, after three days of interrogation by Lebanese security forces.

Red Cross representatives visited Simon Sa’adati in southern Lebanon and reported that he was in good health. According to a report by the Lebanese news station LBC on Saturday, the Red Cross will coordinate Sa’adati’s return to Israel.

On arrival in Israel, Sa’adati is expected to be taken in for questioning by security forces in order to shed light on the reason behind his crossing into Lebanon.

Sa’adati reportedly has a history of disappearing. His mother told Channel 10 News that he’s done similar things before. He is also suspected of having a history of mental illness.

Hezbollah media painted Sa’adati as a spy who was aware of his actions rather than an individual who is mentally ill — and demanded a chance to interrogate him as well.

Sa’adati was interrogated by the Lebanese army, who said he spoke only Hebrew, according to media reports from Lebanon.

The army was in contact with UNIFIL, the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon, which monitors the border between the two countries, to try to get more information about the detainee.

In March 2012, an Israeli Arab man, Ahmed Jamal Daif, who drifted into Lebanese water, was returned to Israel after being held in Lebanese custody for approximately six months.

It was unclear whether Daif, who worked as a chef at a restaurant in Netanya, was accidentally carried by the tide or whether he purposely swam past the maritime border. He was found in a diving suit at the southern Lebanese border town of Naqoura.