Last week, Turkish authorities detained two Israelis, Natali and Mordi Oknin after they photographed Turkish president Erdoğan’s palace while on vacation. The couple was held for eight days in a Turkish prison and released thanks to the help of Israel’s foreign minister, Yair Lapid, and prime minister Naftali Bennett. Natali said that while she was detained, she could hear a Muslim call to prayer from a nearby mosque. She said, “I closed my ears and shouted loudly, “Please God, save me!”
This is great news that the Oknins have been released from the Turkish prison. The Oknins called this, when they arrived back in Israel, a “Hanukkah miracle.” And I think it’s fantastic, because Hanukkah is celebrated for eight days – they were in prison for eight days and then they were released. What’s also interesting is that they are from the town of Modi’in, where the story of Hanukkah originates. So it surely is a Hanukkah miracle, and again, a reminder that the God of Israel never slumbers nor sleeps.
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