South Bend, IN – Israeli agent Jonathan Pollard’s bid to see his father before he died ended tragically on Saturday morning when Morris Pollard, 95, died at Memorial Hospital and Health System in South Bend, Indiana.
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Morris Pollard had been hospitalized for more than a week, suffering from the impact of a severe bladder infection. His rabbi at Temple Beth-El in South Bend, Eric Siroka, sent out a letter to his congregants informing them the funeral service would be held on Monday.
Pollard’s family, American Jewish leaders and Knesset members had been lobbying for Jonathan to be granted what is called “compassionate leave” for 24 hours to allow him to see his father before he died. Jonathan spoke to Morris on the phone last weekend for the last time.
The effort will now shift to lobbying to enable Pollard to attend his father’s funeral. He was not allowed to attend the funeral of his mother.
Morris Pollard led an unsuccessful battle to bring about his son’s release from jail. He was responsible for initiating the latest wave of public calls upon US President Barack Obama to commute his son’s sentence by persuading Lawrence Korb, an assistant secretary of defense at the time of Pollard’s arrest, to join the cause.
Pollard wrote before his death that he cannot sleep at night knowing the injustice of his son’s sentence.
“In more than two decades, no evidence has been put forth of damage caused to the United States as a result of Pollard’s actions,” he wrote in the Washington Post in November. “Nothing that could begin to justify a life sentence.”
MK Arye Eldad (National Union) responded to the news of Morris Pollard’s death with harsh words for US President Barack Obama for not releasing Jonathan Pollard to see his father before he died.
“The people of Israel will not forget Obama’s cruelty, inflexibility and the maliciousness of ignoring all the requests and petitions for Jonathan’s release.” He added, “The US president, that wasn’t even able to make this basic humane gesture, cannot wonder why the Jewish people will enlist all their powers to prevent his reelection.”
Maybe now all these groups will stop focusing on Pollard and instead work towards getting the U.S. to recongize the legitimate security needs of EY and why the 1967 borders are not a good starting point for negotiations. Don’t waste scarce political chits on a convicted spy.
This seals it. I’m for sure working against the reelection of this rasha.
iam not a expert .. but would it be right for bibi to tell obama ..no more talk till polard is released to israel ?
I’m disgusted by Obama’s lack of action. Here is the address for Jonathan Pollard — maybe he needs letters of condolence.
Here is Jonathan’s address:
Jonathan Pollard #09185-016
c/o FCI Butner
P.O. Box 1000
Butner, NC
U.S.A 27509-1000
Was he jewish?
There is a procedure for exactly this kind of situation: Emergency furloughs. But the decision is not made by the President, it is made by the warden of the prison where the inmate resides. The appeals are being made to the wrong person.
I appreciate Eldad’s priority of Yidden first, and his unabashed political uncorrectness where proper action was completely ignored by an idiotic President from Kenya. Thanks for saying what we are all thinking!
Since when do all convicted criminals get to leave to visit their parents? I had no idea this was standard practice. That’s the bummer about breaking the law. You get incarcerated, sometimes for a long time.
Obama is waiting to grand Pollard a pardon until a month before is re-election so that he shifts the jewish voters…..
Don’t do the crime if you can’t do the time.
Jews have three traits: shame, pity and kindness (bayshonus, rachmonus ugemilus chasodim). Some of these commenters (commentators?) are apparently not Jewish.
I wish the commenters would learn about the mitzvah of pidyon shvuyim before writing. It is a mitzvah to free a yid-period. It goes against your western mind? Well so does much of Torah law. To make matters worse, his time is not related to his crime and simple words either make u for or against his plight. Who’s side are u on?
Obama & #1 you r both from the same ……………
obama can’t free Pollard; he has no time; he is so so busy like playing golf
it would be great is obama gives pollard a pardon before the next election. I still would not vote for him but I would appreciate the kindness (however politically motivated it was).
On a separate note, I don’t think most Americans, other than Jews and maybe some religious christians care that much about Pollard.
the fact that we must all remember is that pollard gave information to israel that helped them to take out the Iranian nuclear facility that Iran was going to use to make a bomb against Israel and possible the U.S. We should be thanking him. he did this despite the consequences. he may have “stolen” the information on a technicallity but my understanding is that there was an information sharing agreement between the State of Israel and the U.S. and the U.S. was not sharing as agreed. Could this have been resolved through mediation or negotiation, possibly, so I don’t condone what Pollard did. I would have rather seen cooperation between the U.S. and Israel and a joint strike force taking out Iran. Unfortunately that didn’t happen. I have a hard time judging Pollard either way as good or bad. I think he was both. Right to try to save Israel, wrong to take information that he was not officially allowed to.
1. This is a classic case of pidyon shevuyim as opposed to say a murderer who is dangerous to people
2. I visit prisoners in the UK and there is a guy who was in for life for murder and he was ALLOWED TO ATTEND HIS FATHER’S SHIVA. Yes he went in leg-irons and with 24 hour guard but nonetheless he was allowed out for a day.
Most, if not all would say Jonathan Pollard’s sentence has been excessive. All we need to do is look at the people who had commited the same crime before him, and after him. Not one receieved the same sentence. Not one. Remember that. He did commit a crime. He was punished for it. Here we are reading posts by Jews, wether frum or not, still Jews saying he should do the time and complete the sentence? Does that mean of a Muderer, a rapist, did a crime and got only 1 year-did he then do his sentence? You see, just because a sentence was handed down, doesnt make it the right one. Like the man or not, hes a Jew. Hitler didnt care if you were a quater Jewish, half Jewish or a full Jew. To Hitler a Jew was a Jew. Why dont we wake up and realize hes a Jew to us too. And as a Jew, its our responsibility to make sure that when something is wrong-we right it. Lets get this man out of prison. Let him live his life as a Jew outside of bars and walls. Walk in Jonathan Pollards shoes before you judge him.
Unfortunately, the Pollard case has NOTHING to do with guilt or innocence. Pollard is stuck behind bars because he was made an example of. The US government (exclusive of this current administration) usually has quite a good relationship with Israel. Considering this overall good relationship, America was embarrassed by the Pollard incident and needed to make an example of someone, and Pollard was and is that example warning Israel not to do it again.