Russian envoy raps ‘haughty tone’ of Israeli officials in Naama Issachar case
Anatoly Viktorov decries ‘talk of legal injustice’ over steep sentence imposed on Israeli-American for drug offense, says he doesn’t believe matter will affect diplomatic ties
The Russian ambassador in Tel Aviv strongly criticized the “haughty” conduct of Israeli officials working to secure the release of an Israeli-American woman jailed in Russia.
A Russian court on Thursday rejected an appeal from Naama Issachar, who is serving a seven-year prison sentence for a minor drug offense.
Israeli leaders have lobbied Moscow to release Issachar and asked Russian President Vladimir Putin to pardon her.
In portions of an interview with the Maariv newspaper published Thursday, Ambassador Anatoly Viktorov stressed any formal pardon request must come from Issachar herself and not Israeli officials, whom he rebuked for their “tone.”
“The way in which the issue is being portrayed in Israeli media, plus the intervention of senior officials in such a haughty and boastful tone, is utterly objectionable,” he said.
“But what bothers us the most is the basis of Russia’s presumption of guilt… that there everything is supposedly not okay,” Viktorov added.
The Russian diplomat asked rhetorically how Israel would react in a similar situation, with an Israeli court being called on to change a conviction it had handed down.
“For some reason, with Naama Issachar immediately there is talk of a miscarriage of justice, about her innocence, about the bad incarceration conditions, only because this is happening in Russia. We won’t agree to this,” he fumed.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu asserted this week that Israel would secure Issachar’s release, but Viktorov said Russian criticism of Israel was not directed at him. Rather, he said, he took issue with “the commentary of various journalists and politicians,” whom he did not name.
“I don’t believe this will complicate the ties between the two countries,” he said.
He also denied the tough sentence handed down to Issachar was linked to Israel’s detention of Aleksey Burkov, a Russian national who was deported to the United States to face embezzlement charges for a credit card scheme that allegedly stole millions of dollars from American consumers.
“The connection was of timing only,” Viktorov said.
Issachar, who has been held in Russia since April, was arrested after a small quantity of marijuana, some nine grams, was found in her luggage during a layover in Moscow.
The amount is within the legal limit for personal use in Israel. It generally gets a slap on the wrist in Russia, and Israelis have alleged that the long sentence was politically motivated.
Speaking in English, Issachar told the court Thursday she not only “had no intention” of bringing drugs into Russia, but stressed that “I had not even passed the customs control” when she was stopped.
After the decision was announced, Netanyahu said he told Issachar’s mother, Yaffa, that “despite the disappointing court decision I am not giving up.”
“I’ll keep doing whatever I can to bring Naama home,” he said.
Netanyahu on Tuesday told a rally he would bring Issachar back, but on Wednesday, his spokesperson tried to tamp down the expectations, saying it would take time.
Yaffa Issachar told Israeli media earlier that she believed the prime minister. She and Issachar’s sister broke down in tears after hearing that her appeal was rejected.
At the heart of the appeal against her conviction was the claim that because Issachar was on a connecting flight and had no intention of leaving the airport, there was no crime of smuggling, making any offense she committed a minor one.
Israeli officials have reportedly speculated that Issachar’s release will come from diplomatic efforts rather than in the courtroom, and will require a pardon that can only be granted by Putin himself.
Moscow has said the Russian leader would consider the request.
Also Thursday, a Russian delegation arrived in Israel to discuss travel arrangements between the two countries.
Israeli officials were expected to push for Issachar’s release and discuss an apparent tightening of restrictions on Israeli travel to Russia.
On Wednesday and Thursday, Russia detained dozens of Israeli tourists and businesspeople at a Moscow airport for hours.
The move was designed to send a “message” to Jerusalem ahead of the arrival of the delegation to Israel to discuss the Kremlin’s frustration over the annual barring of thousands of its citizens from entering the Jewish state, Hebrew media reported on Wednesday night, citing diplomatic sources.
The Times of Israel Community.