(19 Feb 2025)
RESTRICTION SUMMARY:
ASSOCIATED PRESS
Jerusalem – 19 February 2025
1. Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar and Serbian Foreign Minister Marko Duric entering room
2. SOUNDBITE (English) Gideon Saar, Israeli Foreign Minister:
"There are efforts of Iran to restore Hezbollah, through Iranian money they are pushing to Lebanon. Unfortunately, Turkey is playing a negative role here and helps Iran smuggling money through flights that comes from Iran to Istanbul and from Istanbul to Beirut, and the Turks know that there are suitcases there with a lot of millions of dollars that were already, they were successful with smuggling into Lebanon, and they continue with these efforts and this is how they’re trying, the Iranians, to assassinate the future of Lebanon and to keep Lebanon under Iranian occupation."
3. Wide of press conference
4. SOUNDBITE (English) Marko Duric, Serbian Foreign Minister:
"Alon Ohel is an Israeli-Serbian citizen who was kidnapped when he was only 22 years old. He was not a military person. He was not armed. He’s a pianist. He has never done anything to harm a single living being. His family is from Novi Sad from Serbia. He has endured tremendous suffering and he’s been for 500 days kept in a dungeon. And I want to make a plea, an appeal, to all those who can help to release Alon, and all the other hostages so that they can return to their homes, so that they can return to their families. And we will not stop until we make sure that our Alon is home and safe."
5. Saar and Duric shaking hands and leaving room
STORYLINE:
Serbian Foreign Minister Marko Duric made a plea on Wednesday for the release of an Israeli-Serbian citizen being held hostage by Hamas in Gaza.
Meeting with his Israeli counterpart Gideon Saar in Jerusalem, Duric called for international efforts to secure the return of Alon Ohel.
"He was not a military person. He was not armed. He’s a pianist. He has never done anything to harm a single living being," said Duric, pledging to continue diplomatic efforts to ensure the 24-year-old reunites with his family.
Last week, 16 months after Alon was taken on October 7, 2023, freed hostages confirmed he was still alive.
It is unclear if he will be released in the first stage of a ceasefire deal between Israel and Hamas, which is currently underway.
The Serbian foreign minister also held talks with his Israeli counterpart to discuss strengthening ties between their nations.
AP video by Moshe Edri
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