At least 40 Israeli citizens were detained and later released after arriving at a Moscow airport from Tel Aviv the day before, the Foreign Ministry confirmed Monday, following a Russian report on the incident.

The travelers were reportedly held on suspicion of having ties to Israel’s war against Russia’s ally, Iran. Security forces at Domodedovo Airport reportedly stressed to detainees that Iran is an ally of Russia and that anyone who is an enemy of Iran is “our enemy as well.”

“Immediately upon learning of the incident, at the instruction of Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar, the Foreign Ministry acted both with the foreign ministry in Moscow and with the Russian embassy in Israel,” the ministry said in a statement.

“Following this intervention, the incident was resolved, and the Israelis’ entry was approved. The Russians were made to understand that this conduct is completely unacceptable, and Israel views the incident with great seriousness,” the ministry added.

While the ministry could not address other details of the detention, a source familiar with the incident told the........

© The Times of Israel