'Israeli' reservist who fought in Gaza detained in Prague over French ‘criminal’ alert

An 'Israeli' who fought in Gaza and Lebanon was detained for hours at Prague’s international airport and denied entry to the Czech Republic after authorities claimed France had issued a “criminal alert” against him, even though he has never set foot in the country, according to a report published by Ynet.

The man, an IOF reservist, had traveled to Prague for vacation with his wife following months of reserve duty. He described being “treated like a criminal” and said he was ultimately forced to return to 'Israel' after a 15-hour ordeal, paying for his own return tickets and losing the planned holiday.

The incident began around 9 p.m. Tuesday when four armed police officers approached the couple during passport control at Václav Havel Airport and informed them that the man was not permitted to enter the country. After prolonged questioning, officials explained that the alert originated from France, which had issued a Schengen-wide warning blocking his entry into all participating European Union states.

The traveler reported that Czech officials told him the French warning accused him of involvement in “serious crimes.”, but didn't explicitly say it's related to his service in the IOF. 

Czech authorities reportedly informed him that only France could lift the alert, meaning he was barred from entering any Schengen-area country until it was resolved.