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ISTANBUL — Italy on Friday called on Israel to immediately release five Italian women activists being held by Israeli forces in the occupied West Bank, with Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani saying he hoped they would be freed "in a matter of hours."
Tajani made the demand on the sidelines of an international summit in Istanbul. "What happened is unacceptable, they were not committing any crime," he told reporters.
The five women were detained on Thursday by Israeli police in Kiryat Arba, in the West Bank, along with other international activists, while seeking to protect Palestinian farmers during the olive harvest, Italian foreign ministry sources said. They were taken to the Kiryat Arba police station, where they were interrogated and had their mobile phones seized, according to Italian press reports.
Israeli authorities told Italian diplomats on Friday that the women were expected to be transferred to Israel's immigration authority pending expulsion and repatriation procedures, the sources said.
Tajani later said the five women would return to Italy on the morning of Saturday, October 24, Tgcom24 reported. The Italian foreign ministry said on Thursday evening, hours after the detention, that it had asked Israel for clarifications and the activists' immediate release.
Rome's intervention adds to international scrutiny of Israeli operations in Palestinian territory, where disputes over security measures, freedom of movement and the treatment of foreign activists continue to fuel tensions. Israel maintains that its security operations in the West Bank are necessary to address threats and maintain order; the specific reasons for holding the five activists must be established from the available evidence.