The Slow Beheading of Jonathan Pollard

The shocking news that the US government website has erased the 2015 date for the release of Jonathan Pollard portends a most dreadful outcome to this terribly tragic affair, and compels us all to review its long history, in the hope that it can awaken the need for a concerted effort to call for his immediate release.

A sobering discussion revolving around Natan Sharansky's lengthy imprisonment and his ability to maintain hope during his ordeal took place more than a year ago in Jerusalem. The participants included Jewish Agency Chairman Natan Sharansky, Jerusalem Post Editor in Chief Steven Linde, and two very well known Americans, Dr. Mahmet Oz and Rabbi Shmuel Boteach. During the question period, the inevitable query arose about the adamant refusal by the Americans to release Jonathan Pollard after being imprisoned for almost three decades. Not one of the four participants was able to offer a logical or convincing argument to help understand this refusal and none were able to offer any suggestion as to how to help facilitate his release. On the contrary, Rabbi Boteach, who visited Pollard in prison and lobbied for his release, expressed his solemn belief that the Americans wanted Jonathan to die there!

The news that Jonathan Pollard's health has now so deteriorated that he required hospitalization comes as no surprise considering his long imprisonment, several years of which were spent in solitary confinement. At this critical juncture, it seems absolutely vital not only for Jonathan, but also for the many fair-minded and decent people all over the world who have tried unsuccessfully to penetrate the iron wall of mystery that surrounds his incarceration, to be provided with some rational accounting for this lengthy, cruel, and unusual prison term. Up to the present, no such explanation has been forthcoming, and in its absence, the question as to why Pollard has been singled out for this exceptional treatment naturally invites a wide spectrum of theories and accusations, including those of overt discrimination and thinly veiled anti-Semitism. This latter charge has recently been made by no less a personage than former CIA director Woolsey, who noted that others convicted of spying for allies of the U.S. have received sentences of no longer than eight years, while Pollard still languishes in prison.

The extraordinarily harsh life sentence imposed on Pollard leaves the indelible impression of having been born in sin. A plea bargain which was accepted by the government, commuting his sentence to only ten years in prison, was effectively abrogated when then Secretary of Defense Caspar Weinberger submitted a secret affidavit purportedly containing charges of such severity that they warranted the life sentence. The details of that affidavit have never been revealed to the public and therefore continue to raise suspicions about the merit of its contents.

Pollard's imprisonment played a prominent role in the 1998 Wye River negotiations when Bill Clinton, in order to obtain Netanyahu's agreement, made a commitment to release Pollard. This in fact was the 'deal-maker' that won over a reluctant Netanyahu, who agreed to the deal despite distrusting Arafat for his long history of agreement violations. But ultimately Clinton, citing opposition from public officials, never honored his promise. After President Obama's unequivocal rejection of Prime Minister Netanyahu's request for Pollard's release made at the start of the peace negotiations between Israel and the P.A. – despite its obvious legitimacy at the time when America was pressuring Israel to release hundreds of convicted terrorist murderers to the Palestinian Authority – seriously increased our perplexity.

It must be noted that Pollard never sought to betray the U.S. or bring harm to any of its institutions. His only crime was wanting to aid Israel by supplying it with information he felt was vital to its security and yet being withheld from it. He transferred the pick of U.S. intelligence on Arab and Islamic military activity conducted by both "friendly and unfriendly" Arab countries. The data included essential details about Syrian, Iraqi, Libyan, and Iranian nuclear, chemical, and biological-warfare capabilities, as well as planned terrorist attacks against Israel.

The list of prominent personalities who now declare their support for the release of Jonathan Pollard includes statesmen, Noble Laureates, clergymen, intellectuals, scientists, senators, congressmen, and members of the Intelligence community, some of whom originally opposed his release. The register begins with two former Secretaries of State (Kissinger and Schultz) followed by former Vice President Don Quayle, Senator John McCaine, Dennis Ross, former Director of the CIA James Woolsey; Director of the FBI at the time of Pollard's arrest William Webster; former Assistant Secretary of Defense Lawrence Korb; former Chairman of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence at the time of Pollard's arrest Senator David Durenberger; former White House Counsel Bernard Nussbaum; and former Deputy Attorney General Philip Heyman – the last three of which reviewed the classified intelligence reports on Pollard's case and nevertheless chose to add their names to those who call for Pollard's release. PM Binyamin Netanyahu and President Shimon Peres have made personal appeals. They were joined by Israel's two Chief Rabbis and by an overwhelming majority of Israel's Parliament. They were joined by the vote of the umbrella group representing the 50 largest American Jewish organizations that added the voice of American Jewry to those who seek Pollard's freedom.

When considering the evident crescendo of support in favor of freedom for Pollard, we are confronted by a September 2011 report in the New York Times that is totally vexing. We are informed about a meeting between Vice President Joe Biden and a group of rabbis in south Florida. When the rabbis raised the question about possible clemency for Jonathan Pollard, the Vice President's vehement response was "Over my dead body"! And indeed Pollard continues to languish in prison!

A fresh wind blew into the picture in December 2013 when Governor Bill Richardson, a former UN Ambassador and a confidant of Pres. Obama, wrote to the president and suggested that Pollard should be freed immediately. Richardson stated, "In my view there is no longer a need for a discussion today. Virtually everyone who was in a high position of government and dealt with the ramifications of what Pollard did at the time now supports his release."

Pollard's immediate release was also recommended in a letter to President Obama by former National Security Advisor Bud McFarlane, who unequivocally blamed Weinberger's "anti-Israel agenda" for Pollard's disproportionate sentence and called it a "great injustice." Similarly, former Assistant Secretary of Defense Lawrence Korb stated that the sentence was entirely due to Weinberger's "visceral hatred of Israel."

The pathological animus that surrounds the Pollard affair is evidently still potent enough to keep him in prison and to contribute to his slow beheading!

Is Jonathan Pollard Being Held Prisoner by the Saudis?

Sir - Two former highly-placed public officials have recently shed light on the true motives surrounding Jonathan Pollard's sentencing. Both officials relate to the affidavit, put forward by the then Secretary of Defense Caspar Weinberger, that was responsible for abrogating the plea bargain between Pollard and the U.S. Government. This affidavit effectively brought about the end of the (already agreed-upon) plea bargain, and replaced it with a life-imprisonment sentence.

In a letter to President Obama recommending Pollard's immediate release, former National Security Advisor Bud McFarlane unequivocally blamed Weinberger's "anti-Israel agenda" for his disproportionate sentence and called it a "great injustice." Similarly, former Assistant Secretary of Defense Lawrence Korb stated that the sentence was entirely due to Weinberger's "visceral hatred of Israel." The pathological animus that surrounded Pollard's sentencing found a potent soul mate in Weinberger, one who not only shared the hatred but possessed the motivation, means, and influence to assure Pollard's internment for three decades.

But as we've seen, Weinberger was not the only voice calling for Pollard to remain in jail. To the impartial observer, there appears to be a anti-Pollard agenda deeply ensconced among the leaders of the U.S government. Which begs the question: What type of damning information could Pollard have transferred to Israel that caused such malicious players in Washington to send him away for life?

First note that Pollard never sought to betray the U.S. or bring harm to any of its institutions. His only crime was wanting to aid Israel by supplying it with information he felt was vital to its security and yet being withheld from it. He transferred the pick of U.S. intelligence on Arab and Islamic military activity conducted by both "friendly and unfriendly" Arab countries, such as Morocco and Pakistan. The data included essential details about Syrian, Iraqi, Libyan, and Iranian nuclear, chemical, and biological-warfare capabilities, as well as planned terrorist attacks against Israel.

Pollard's revelations could not have sat well with the Arab world, but fortunately for them there was one country positioned to raise the cudgel: Saudi Arabia.

Saudi Arabia's possession of the world's largest oil reserves, its strategic location, and its unique role in the Arab and Islamic worlds are the reasons Saudi friendship is valued by the United States. They share common concerns and consult regularly on regional and global issues. These close ties with America, in addition to their vast oil-based wealth, provide the Saudis with the means to establish a huge network of pernicious influence throughout the United States. Firstly, they export Wahabism, the most extreme form of Islamic religious practice. They achieve this by financing the construction of hundreds of mosques and madrasas across America, and pay for the training and support of the fanatical imams that spread these teachings. Secondly, the Saudis invest millions of dollars 'buying up' departments of Middle East Studies and Political Science in select universities in order to spread their biased ideologies. And still more baneful is the Saudis' accumulation of out-going U.S public officials on their bloated payrolls. As former CIA case officer Robert Baer puts it, there is hardly a living former CIA director, White House staffer, or member of Congress who hasn't ended up on the Saudi payroll in one way or another. It therefore comes as no surprise when we learn of the Saudi funds going to the Carter Center, established by the former President.

I fear that Pollard, while delving into the various intelligent reports, may have discovered the more detailed accounts of Saudi influence on America's government as well as on past and present public servants. He did not stand much of a chance against Weinberger's deeply-rooted hatred of Israel or against Saudi Arabia's unlimited funds being channeled toward Muslim extremism.

Zev Chamudot

Petach Tikvah

[Banner image credit: Wikimedia user udi Steinwell]

Why the Case of Jonathan Pollard is a Murder Mystery

Sir - The news that Jonathan Pollard's health has now so deteriorated that he requires hospitalization comes as no surprise when considering his 29 year imprisonment, several years of which were spent in solitary confinement. At this critical juncture, it seems absolutely vital not only for Jonathan, but also for the many fair-minded and decent people all over the world who have tried unsuccessfully to penetrate the iron wall of mystery that surrounds his incarceration, to be provided with some rational accounting and understanding for this lengthy, cruel, and unusual imprisonment. Up to the present, no such explanation has been forthcoming and we are all left feeling utter frustration and helplessness in regard to this enormously tragic affair. Pollard is still languishing in prison, while the mystery remains a mystery.

The absence of an intelligible understanding as to why Pollard has been singled out for this exceptional treatment naturally invites a wide spectrum of theories and accusations, including those of overt discrimination and thinly veiled antisemitism. This latter charge has recently been made by no less a personage than former CIA director James Woolsey, who noted that others convicted of spying for allies of the U.S. have received sentences of no longer than eight years.

President Obama's unequivocal rejection of Prime Minister Netanyahu's request for Pollard's release made at the start of recent peace negotiations -- despite its obvious legitimacy at the time when America was pressuring Israel to release hundreds of convicted terrorist murderers to the Palestinian Authority -- leaves us all completely perplexed. The mystery continues!

The extraordinarily harsh life sentence imposed on Pollard leaves the indelible impression of having been born in sin. A plea bargain agreed to by the government for a maximum sentence of 10 years was completely disregarded when the then Secretary of Defense Caspar Weinberger submitted a secret document purportedly containing charges of such severity that warranted this maximum sentence. This rather outlandish sequence emerges as even more bizarre due to the fact that neither Pollard nor his attorney were ever given access to this document or were able to learn of its contents. This type of behavior in a court of law not only does violence to the most basic principles of justice but is normally found only in the most totalitarian of societies.

Pollard's imprisonment played a prominent role in the 1998 Wye River negotiations when Bill Clinton, in order to obtain Netanyahu's agreement, made a commitment to release Pollard. This in fact was the deal-maker that won over a reluctant Netanyahu, who agreed to the deal despite distrusting Arafat for his long history of agreement violations. After the signing, however, Clinton did not honor his promise because he claimed there was opposition from public officials. This concern was notably non-apparent at the end of Clinton's adminstration, when with seeming alacrity he granted pardons to well-known criminals, some of whom until the pardon were barred from entry into the United States.

The list of prominent personalities that now declare their support for the release of Jonathan Pollard include statesmen, Noble Laureates, clergymen, intellectuals, scientists, senators, congressmen, and members of the Intelligence community, some of whom originally opposed his release. The register begins with two former Secretaries of State (Kissinger and Schultz) followed by former Vice President Don Quayle, Senator John McCaine, Dennis Ross, former Director of the CIA James Woolsey; Director of the FBI at the time of Pollard's arrest William Webster; former Assistant Secretary of Defense Lawrence Korb; former Chairman of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence at the time of Pollard's arrest Senator David Durenberger; former White House Counsel Bernard Nussbaum; and former Deputy Attorney General Philip Heyman -- the last three of which reviewed the classified intelligence reports on Pollard's case and nevertheless chose to add their names to those who call for Pollard's release.

PM Binyamin Netanyahu and President Shimon Peres have made personal appeals for Pollard's release. They were joined by Israel's two Chief Rabbis and by an overwhelming majority of Israel's Parliament. And if Israeli Jewry isn't enough, the American Jewish umbrella group representing 50 national Jewish organizations under the title The Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations has added the voice of American Jewry to those who seek Pollard's freedom.

When considering the evident crescendo of support in favor of freedom for Jonathan Pollard, we are confronted by a report in the New York Times of September 2011 that leaves us completely dumbfounded. We are informed of a meeting between Vice President Joe Biden and a group of rabbis in south Florida. When the rabbis raised the question of possible clemency for Jonathan Pollard, the VP's vehement response was, infamously, "Over my dead body!"

Skip to December 2013. A fresh wind blew into the picture when Governor Bill Richardson, a former UN ambassador and a confidant of Pres. Obama, wrote to the president and recommended Pollard be freed immediately. Richardson stated, "In my view there is no longer a need for a discussion today. Virtually everyone who was in a high position of government and dealt with the ramifications of what Pollard did at the time - now supports his release."

Shortly before Richardson's letter, there was a very sobering panel discussion that took place at the Jerusalem Press Club. The participants consisted of Jewish Agency Chairman Natan Sharansky, Jerusalem Post editor Steven Linde, and two very well known Americans, Dr. Mahmet Oz and Rabbi Shmuley Boteach. The discussion revolved around Sharansky's imprisonment in the Soviet Union and his ability to maintain hope during his long ordeal. During the question period, the inevitable query arose about the Americans' adamant refusal to release Pollard after 29 years. Not one of the four participants was able to offer a logical or convincing argument to help comprehend this refusal, and none were able to offer any suggestion as to how to help facilitate his release. On the contrary: Rabbi Boteach, who visited Pollard in prison and lobbied for his release, expressed his solemn belief that America wants Jonathan to die there!

The mystery of Jonathan Pollard, my friends, is not one of espionage -- it is one of murder!

Zev Chamudot

Petach Tikvah

J.Post June 20: Shimon Peres and Jonathan Pollard

Sir, – I readily proclaim that I do not possess the required Solomonic wisdom to have decisively demanded that President Shimon Peres make his acceptance of the US Presidential Medal of Freedom conditional on the release of Jonathan Pollard.

Having said that, however, I find the statement by Peres’s diplomatic advisor, Nadav Tamir, that “Obama listened seriously and asked good questions” (“Peres adviser: Door not slammed on Pollard release,” June 17), to be a pathetically ignoble attempt to redeem and explain the abominable continuing miscarriage of justice regarding Pollard.

Tamir’s statements do not offer anything but an insult to people’s intelligence. One has every right to expect that the serious listening and the good questions would have taken place when Peres lent the dignity of his office and made his first request for the release of Pollard several months ago. Indeed, the serious attention to the cruel and unusual punishment should have begun 27 years ago when Pollard was first arrested.

The fact that this inhumane incarceration of Pollard continues despite the many American and international statesmen and jurists who have asked for his release remains a blatant mark of shame on both Peres and US President Barack Obama.

ZEV CHAMUDOT
Petah Tikva

From Jack Lew to Jonathan Pollard

Sir, - While it is always welcome news when a Jew like Jack Lew, who openly identifies with his people, is chosen for a prestigious public office, there remains an open festering wound on the American Jewish scene.

It would be most appropriate and impressive however, if instead of Obama choosing a Jew to be his White House chief of staff, he would let that other Jew, Jonathan Pollard, go!

This move enjoys bi-partisan support and is endorsed by many leading figures of past and present government officials. Most important, it is the humane and decent thing to do!

ZEV CHAMUDOT

Petach Tikva

J.Post October 5: Biden and Pollard

Sir, – Joe Biden’s unconscionable statements arouse anger, nausea and a feeling of gross betrayal. One senses a betrayal of decency and the desecration of the very core of the American value system.

Outrageous pronouncements [by Biden like: "Over my dead body" and "He should stay in jail for life"] to a group of rabbis encourage the suspicion that he is airing the politically weighted sentiments of the President. This is especially evident in view of the fact that Biden himself has voiced the opposite opinion on past occasions.

[I do hope that his rabbinical audience, be they Reform, Conservative, or Orthodox, had the good sense to walk out and declare that they will not tolerate this hateful offense against both Jewish and American ethics.]

ZEV CHAMUDOT 

Petah Tikva