[travel Israeli security fail

[mattbell]

Israel spends a huge amount of money on security. They treat train stations, bus stations, malls, and even some restaurants the way we treat airports. However, there are high value targets and not-so-high-value targets, and resources are limited. Apparently the Lev Hamifratz train station is in the latter category.

Security officer: (at entrance to train station) Passport please.

He looks at the passport... he starts looking really concerned when he sees the United Arab Emirates stamp, complete with scary-looking (pretty) Arabic script.

Me: I went to Dubai.
SO: That's what this is? U.A.E. ?
Me: Yes.

He keeps looking.

SO: WHAT'S THIS?? YOU WENT TO SYRIA??
Me: No, I didn't go to Syria. That's Turkey.
SO: That's not Syria?
Me: No, that's a Turkey visa. That's the Turkish flag. It says “Turkey” right there.
SO: Where's your Israel immigration stamp?
Me: Over here. Ben-Gurion airport.
SO: Oh, ok. Go ahead.

Comments

[easwaran.livejournal.com]

I just double-checked, and the Syrian flag is not at all similar to the Turkish one except that it has some red on it. But it's got white and black and two green stars, as opposed to being all red with a star and crescent.

[proctologiste.livejournal.com]

I have no idea what caused this guy to confuse them, but I can see how one can conceivably confuse the names of the two countries when written in hebrew. In phonetic transcription:
surya and turkya.