In the first public statement by a senior Turkish official regarding the Israeli couple detained in Istanbul, Turkish Interior Minister Süleyman Soylu said Tuesday that prosecutors will accuse Oknins of military-political espionage.

“They didn’t just photograph Erdogan’s place but focused on it and even marked it,” he claimed. “Only the court will decide their fate.”

The interior minister’s public remarks decrease the chances of the crisis being quickly resolved through diplomatic channels.

The couple’s attorney Nir Yaslovich, who met with Mordy Oknin on Monday, met with his wife Natali on Tuesday. The Oknins are both Egged bus drivers and regularly appear in Egged marketing videos and ads. Natali asked Yaslovich to obtain some of the videos as proof that she couldn’t possibly be an Israeli spy since a spy would never appear in videos potentially viewed by millions of people.

Also on Tuesday, Israeli diplomats visited the Oknins for the first time, eight days after their arrest. Since Mordy and Natali are being held in separate jails, Israel’s consul in Istanbul, Ronen Levy, visited Natali and the consul-general in Turkey, Udi Eitam, visited Mordy. Levy and Eitam gave the Oknins clothing and other basic supplies and also spoke with prison officials to ensure that the couple receive proper accommodations while in detention.

Also on Tuesday, Mossad head Dovid Barnea spoke with his Turkish counterpart to confirm that the Oknins are innocent civilians. Foreign Ministry Director-General Alon Ushpiz spoke with a senior Turkish foreign ministry official.

(YWN Israel Desk – Jerusalem)