An Israeli journalist has sparked controversy after the publication of a video that shows him walking through the Saudi city of Mecca, the first holiest place in Islam, prohibited for non-Muslims.
The video of journalist Gil Tamary, who works for Israel’s Channel 13, sparked a spate of backlash on social media in Saudi Arabia on Wednesday, two days after it was posted on Twitter. On Tuesday the journalist apologized for any offense he may have caused.
In his 10-minute video, the Israeli journalist is seen climbing Mount Arafat, an essential and sacred stop on the pilgrimage to Mecca.
A forbidden place for non-Muslims
He himself admits that what he is doing is prohibited, pointing out that the place where he is is “a forbidden place for non-Muslims” and adding “I am the first Israeli journalist here to make a video and in Hebrew”.
In response to protests on social media, Gil Tamary explained that his goal was “to show the importance of Mecca and the beauty of Islam.” This video “allowed many people to see for the first time a place so important to our Muslim brothers and sisters”, he justifies.
But his explanations did not calm the anger in the media and social networks. A hashtag “Jew in the Holy Mosque” was created on Twitter, where one user called on the Saudi authorities “not to insult the Muslim nation (…) by allowing Jews to desecrate the city of God’s messenger.”
Riyadh never joined the Abraham Accords brokered by Washington in 2020, which allowed Israel to normalize its relations with Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates, two Gulf countries neighboring Saudi Arabia.
“A shame”
Several Israeli journalists with foreign passports were able to travel to Saudi Arabia during and before US President Joe Biden’s visit to the region last week.
Gil Tamary’s video was also denounced as an “embarrassment” by Twitter accounts that encourage diplomatic normalization between Israel and Saudi Arabia, as were some of his Israeli colleagues.
“There are things that need to be said: What Gil Tamary did is a disgrace to journalism,” Yoav Limor, another Israeli journalist who recently visited the kingdom, wrote on Twitter. Questioned by our AFP colleagues, the Saudi authorities did not respond.
Source: BFM TV
