Israeli Ministry Says There Is a Campaign Against Military Personnel With Turkish Citizenship
Israel’s Ministry of Diaspora Affairs and Combating Antisemitism has published a study on the activities of the Turkish organizations WOLAS and Freedom Watch Platform. According to the ministry, they use open-source intelligence tools to identify Israeli military personnel and civilians with dual citizenship and prepare materials for legal complaints against Israeli citizens who also hold Turkish citizenship.
The Jerusalem Post reported on the ministry’s findings. The Israeli ministry stated that this activity allegedly takes place with the knowledge of the Turkish government. The ministry also claims that antisemitism, the delegitimization of Israel, and legal pressure on Israelis are elements of Turkey’s organized state policy.
Searching for information in open sources
According to the study, Freedom Watch Platform monitors posts and follower lists on social media, including pages linked to Turkey’s Jewish community. After identifying a person, activists, according to the ministry, examine their family and social connections as well as photographs, looking for signs of service in the Israel Defense Forces and possible affiliation with specific units.
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The information about the person is then published online, according to the ministry’s version, while the collected materials are handed over to lawyers to file complaints with Turkish authorities. The study cites as an example a former servicewoman with Israeli and Turkish citizenship. She was allegedly identified through online publications, including a post by her mother published on the day she joined the Israel Defense Forces.
Claims about the organizations
The Israeli ministry claims that WOLAS and Freedom Watch Platform have ties to terrorist organizations, including Hamas. The study also states that Freedom Watch Platform emerged after a protest at the Port of Istanbul over the detention of a vessel carrying aid for Gaza in 2024. Subsequently, according to the ministry, the platform shifted its focus from campaigns against Israel and Israeli companies to individual Israeli citizens.
Minister of Diaspora Affairs and Combating Antisemitism Amichai Chikli said that Turkey under President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan uses various tools to harm Israel. The ministry’s director general, Avi Cohen Scali, accused Erdoğan of pursuing antisemitic policies toward Israel and said that semi-state organizations are targeting Israel Defense Forces personnel with Turkish citizenship.
