Israeli Spy Jonathan Pollard Freed On Parole And Condition From US Prison

“We wish Jonathan and his family, in their reunion, long and prosperous years ahead, health and peace”, Rivlin said.

Jewish American Jonathan Pollard(in pic) was released from almost 30 years in prison for passing USA secrets to Israel in a move swiftly welcomed by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

Netanyahu’s statement on Pollard’s release included nary a reference to any crimes.

C onvicted spy, Jonathan Pollard, has been released on parole after being in prison in the USA for 30 years.

A video taken by a WCBS journalist showed Pollard walking into the federal courthouse in Manhattan with his wife, Esther, on Friday morning.

He was wearing a blue yarmulke, loose khakis and a blue Oxford shirt.

At the time of his arrest, Pollard had clearance to access top-secret information as an intelligence specialist, and worked as an analyst who looked into terrorist activities and instability – mainly in North America and the Caribbean.

The Pollard saga has been a long-time strain on relations with the United States and there was relief that it was over.

The lawyers called the conditions “onerous and oppressive” in a statement announcing their legal challenge in a federal court in NY on Friday. His lawyers, Eliot Lauer and Jacques Semmelman, have said they have arranged a residence and employment for him in the NY City area.

The monitoring bracelet, along with inspections Pollard must submit to, are not necessary for a 61-year-old man, his lawyers added, arguing that such requirements are more suited to pedophiles and stalkers, NPR reported. They said the computer monitoring was unnecessary because he was no longer in possession of any useful classified information.

The case sharply divided opinion in the United States, which now provides more than $3bn (£2bn) a year in aid to Israel and hundreds of millions more in loan guarantees.

Although the release was seen as a festive moment, Ariel urged Israelis to “remember the harsh attitude” of senior US officials over the years, including what he said was a presidential promise from Obama in his first term that was not kept.

“I would have been perfectly pleased if he had spent the rest of his life in jail”.

 Mr. Pollard’s lawyers have sought permission for the former naval officer to travel immediately to Israel.

USA officials said Pollard, over a series of months and for a salary, provided 1,500 intelligence summaries and 800 classified documents.

Pollard has said he wants to immigrate to Israel where his second wife, Esther, lives, and where he can expect to receive substantial Israeli government back-pay. However, Pollard did mention in an interview in 1998 that he regrets having to become a spy and would have rather moved to Israel to serve his country, according to CNN.

Edelstein praised the low-profile release and said that “if we don’t make waves” then “it’s possible that he will be able to fulfill his dream and come here, leaving behind all the suffering he endured”. “That does not work”. But the talks fell apart, and Pollard remained in prison.

While the Obama administration did not facilitate his early release, it also chose not to object to granting him parole, but it denied that it was trying to assuage Israel after a rupture over the president’s nuclear deal with Iran. In the end, officials said Pollard served the full amount stipulated by federal law, which requires a parole hearing after 30 years of a life sentence.