White House: Tensions with Israel would not be factor in Pollard release

by Jordan Fabian and Ben Kamisar - 07/24/15 6:48 PM ET

Easing tensions tensions with Israel will not be a factor in the decision to release convicted Israeli spy Jonathan Pollard, the White House said Friday.

“There is absolutely zero linkage between Mr. Pollard’s status and foreign policy considerations,” said National Security Council spokesperson Alistair Baskey.

{mosads}Baskey added Pollard’s prison sentence “will be determined by the United States Parole Commission according to standard procedures.”

The White House sought to tamp down reports that some U.S. officials believe that Pollard’s release could help repair ties with Israel following the nuclear deal with Iran, which Israel opposes.

The Wall Street Journal reported the Obama administration is preparing to release Pollard, an former Naval intelligence officer who was sentenced in 1987 to life in prison for espionage.

Pollard’s imprisonment has long been a source of tensions between the U.S. and Israel, which objects to his lengthy sentence.

But the convicted spy’s release from prison has been anticipated for years; U.S. officials noted he has long been scheduled to have a mandatory parole hearing in November 2015.

“The Department of Justice has always and continues to maintain that Jonathan Pollard should serve his full sentence for the serious crimes he committed, which in this case is a 30-year sentence as mandated by statute,” said Department of Justice spokesman Marc Raimondi.

Pollard’s earliest possible release date is Nov. 21, according to the Bureau of Prisons website.

The Journal, however, reported “some U.S. officials are pushing for Mr. Pollard’s release in a matter of weeks.”

While Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is a one of the most vocal critics of the Iran deal and has long pressed for Pollard’s early release.

But opponents of the Iran agreement predicted it would have no bearing on public opinion toward the deal.

“You can’t promote the interests of one prisoner to the detriment and possible danger of hundreds of millions of other citizens,” Rabbi Shmuley Boteach, a politically active Orthodox Jewish rabbi, told The Hill.

“But if you ask me, do I think it will sway the American Jewish public? I do not.”

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