The Foreign Ministry on Wednesday began diplomatic efforts to get Israeli marathon runner Haile Satayin out of an Ethiopian jail. Israel has information that the runner, who is set to represent the country in the Beijing Olympics, will be released on bail Friday.
The Ethiopian Athletics Association recently informed its Israeli counterpart that the 53-year-old runner was arrested for unstated reasons at his training camp and transferred to the capital, Addis Ababa.
Deputy Foreign Minister Majali Wahabi spoke with his Ethiopian counterpart and asked him to get Satain released and allow him to return to Israel, so that he can leave for the Olympics. Satain was sent Wednesday to the city of Gondar, where he is to appear in court on Friday.
The Israeli consulate in Addis Ababa asked to meet with him, but local police denied the request. The consulate did speak with the jailed runner by telephone to check that he was being treated well.
Satayin said that his situation is fine, and that he wants to finish the ordeal as soon as possible so he can join the team for the Olympics. A senior diplomat in the consulate will travel today to Gondar to pursue the case with local authorities. A senior diplomatic source noted that Israel views the matter with great importance.
