Putin lands in Israel

Putin, right, being received in Tel Aviv by Israeli foreign minister Katz

Putin, right, being received in Tel Aviv by Israeli foreign minister Katz

Putin, right, being received in Tel Aviv by Israeli foreign minister Katz

Russian President Vladimir Putin landed in Israel on Thursday for a one-day visit during which he will take part in the 75th anniversary of the liberation of the Auschwitz death camp.

Many foreign leaders are attending the ceremony. US Vice President, Mike Pence has also arrived.

Putin was welcomed in the Ben Gurion Airport outside Tel Aviv in an official ceremony by Israeli Foreign Minister Israel Katz and other officials.

The president is expected to hold meetings with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and President Reuven Rivlin.

He also plans to meet Yaffa Issachar, mother of Naama Issachar, a 27-year-old Israeli woman jailed in Moscow over drug charges.

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The meeting comes amidst reports on Russian authorities preparing for her early release after the case sparked a wide protest in Israel.

Issachar, a backpacker who was on her way home after a trip in India, was arrested during transit through a Moscow airport. Russian authorities said 9.6 grams of marijuana were found in her backpack, which she says was not belong to her.

In October, she was sentenced for 7.5 years in prison over “drug trafficking.”

Putin is also scheduled to attend a dedication ceremony of a monument honoring the veterans and victims of the siege of Leningrad in Gan Sacher in Jerusalem together with Rivlin and Netanyahu

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