Dr. Aaron Lerner of IMRA \"\", in his weekly commentary on Arutz-7 last night, launched a stinging attack against both Israel and the United States for their callous approach to the seriously ill and still imprisoned Jonathan Pollard. \"...Israel is quite willing to let [Pollard] die in prison rather than risk exposing the truth about the US-Israel \'special relationship,\'\" Lerner said. \"In its treatment of Jonathan Pollard, the U.S. has demonstrated not friendship but utter contempt for the Jewish State and indifference to its security. In cooperating with the Americans in the excessive punishment and torment of her agent, Israel is guilty of self-abasement and of endangering her own security.\"
\"America deliberately blind-sided Israel by withholding vital security information about the existential threat from Iraq,\" he continued. \"Pollard put his life on the line to get this information to Israel so that the State would be ready with gas masks, sealed rooms, and a comprehensive defense plan. For this he is serving the longest, harshest sentence in the history of the United States. Successive governments of Israel have done little over the last 16 years to rescue Pollard.\"
Pollard\'s wife Esther\'s persistent efforts to achieve his release received a stunning blow this week when she learned that Prime Minister Sharon has done nothing to advance a new plan of action that high-level American sources assured the Pollards could win his release. In a meeting with Mrs. Pollard and Sharon, Israel\'s former Chief Rabbi Mordechai Eliyahu advised the Prime Minister that he was prepared to leave immediately for Washington as an official Israeli government emissary to make a personal request to President Bush to release Pollard for Passover. It was felt that certain facts - among them: Pollard is seriously ill; his new legal documents make a solid case for Bush to lay before the American people; and Sharon was present when former President Clinton promised to release Pollard - would help assure the plan\'s success.
However, Lerner reports, \"Esther Pollard [has] just received the final blow: official confirmation that the Prime Minister has done nothing about Pollard for the last two weeks and that he intends to do nothing. Not now. Not later. Not any time soon... If, in the meantime, the seriously ill Pollard should die in prison, Israel would dutifully bring him home in a box... The U.S. could then continue to exploit Pollard in death as a permanent symbol of Jews\' dual loyalty and Israeli duplicity. Contrary to her own interests, Israel has abandoned Pollard to his fate while continuing to assist the U.S. in perpetuating the lies about him. Taking its lead from Israel, American Jewish leadership supports Pollard with lip-service but no action to assist or save his life.\"
\"America deliberately blind-sided Israel by withholding vital security information about the existential threat from Iraq,\" he continued. \"Pollard put his life on the line to get this information to Israel so that the State would be ready with gas masks, sealed rooms, and a comprehensive defense plan. For this he is serving the longest, harshest sentence in the history of the United States. Successive governments of Israel have done little over the last 16 years to rescue Pollard.\"
Pollard\'s wife Esther\'s persistent efforts to achieve his release received a stunning blow this week when she learned that Prime Minister Sharon has done nothing to advance a new plan of action that high-level American sources assured the Pollards could win his release. In a meeting with Mrs. Pollard and Sharon, Israel\'s former Chief Rabbi Mordechai Eliyahu advised the Prime Minister that he was prepared to leave immediately for Washington as an official Israeli government emissary to make a personal request to President Bush to release Pollard for Passover. It was felt that certain facts - among them: Pollard is seriously ill; his new legal documents make a solid case for Bush to lay before the American people; and Sharon was present when former President Clinton promised to release Pollard - would help assure the plan\'s success.
However, Lerner reports, \"Esther Pollard [has] just received the final blow: official confirmation that the Prime Minister has done nothing about Pollard for the last two weeks and that he intends to do nothing. Not now. Not later. Not any time soon... If, in the meantime, the seriously ill Pollard should die in prison, Israel would dutifully bring him home in a box... The U.S. could then continue to exploit Pollard in death as a permanent symbol of Jews\' dual loyalty and Israeli duplicity. Contrary to her own interests, Israel has abandoned Pollard to his fate while continuing to assist the U.S. in perpetuating the lies about him. Taking its lead from Israel, American Jewish leadership supports Pollard with lip-service but no action to assist or save his life.\"