Posted on 12/27/2013 11:47:49 AM PST by cll
United States Secretary of State John Kerry has offered Israel the release of Jonathan Pollard, Channel 10 News reported on Friday.
According to the report, Kerry’s offer was made as part of the discussions surrounding the upcoming planned release of 26 terrorists from Israeli jails as a “gesture” to Palestinian Authority chairman Mahmoud Abbas.
Kol Yisrael radio, which also reported about Kerry’s offer, said it relates to the fourth stage of the terrorist release and is conditional upon Israel agreeing to release Israeli Arabs who have committed acts of terrorism.
Israeli officials were quoted by both outlets as having said that they believe the idea has not been cleared with President Barack Obama and as such were doubtful that the offer would actually be implemented.
Pollard’s release has been tied in the past week with recent revelations by documents leaked by Edward Snowden that the United States conducted surveillance on Israeli leaders.
(Excerpt) Read more at israelnationalnews.com ...
By the way ... in reference to this ... “Why would Israel, the great ally of America, provide Israeli citizenship after Pollard’s conviction of American treason? Just what’s in this for Israel?”
I have to note that there is no charge of treason and no conviction of treason. People may say that to themselves in “talking around the water cooler” - but that is NOT backed up by the record - anywhere.
People who use the word “TREASON” - are either IGNORANT of the facts of the case or are intentionally trying to MISLEAD people by lying about it.
This statement is factually incorrect. The notion that Israel is an "ally" of the United States is nothing more than political propaganda. The U.S. and Israel have no mutual defense treaty that obligates one to render assistance to the other in the event of a military attack -- except for one very limited circumstance that doesn't give Israel any special status in U.S. foreign relations. [Anyone who knows that one circumstance should post it here and go to the head of the class!]
Israel is no more an "ally" of the United States than Pakistan is.
What would you call an American citizen acting as a double agent for a foreign nation?
Right. First they denied any such link for years. They even initially rejected his request for citizenship when he was first imprisoned. LOL.
Absolutely yes ... when looking at what he was charged with and convicted for (not for treason, by the way) and in comparison to ALL OTHERS who are or have been in similar situations.
I supplied that list of “comparisons” earlier ...
Comparing other sentences to Jonathan Pollard
http://www.jonathanpollard.org/sentences.htm
Agree.
This is an important point not often mentioned. Israel acts in what it percieves as its own best best interests and if these include passing classified stuff sourced from the US to China, or Russia, or whomever, they’ll do it without batting an eyelash. There is no loyalty here. Sentimentalists should remember this..
This is Exhibit A to support the argument that every anti-Semite in the U.S. would make to keep Jewish Americans out of positions of power in the U.S.
Of course, so many of these @ssholes have a way of trotting out this "Israeli citizen" thing only when they are facing trouble with the U.S. legal system. See "Crazy Eddie" Antar (tax evasion and securities fraud) and Samuel Sheinbein (murdered and dismembered a classmate in suburban Maryland) for examples of this.
Israel was trying to maintain the “cover” for itself in the beginning of this case. It’s like those spy shows on TV - where they say that they will disavow knowledge of you, if you are caught.
WELL ... Israel disavowed knowledge of it - and then later they said that Jonathan Pollard was working directly for the State of Israel.
AND this brings up another issue as to why some of the US officials still try to keep Jonathan Pollard in jail — not for his crime - but in order to punish Israel for denying it in the first place and fooling the USA. The jail sentence has nothing to do with Jonathan Pollard himself.
That’s why his time in jail is so disproportionate — it is a “state to state” conflict and a “punishment” that some officials think they have to IMPOSE ON ISRAEL.
Anti-Semites and the Anti-Israel crowd inside government and outside government will use ANY EXCUSE at all (no matter whether it’s to an individual or to the State of Israel) to weaken and ultimately threaten Israel’s long-term viability.
There are plenty of Israel haters who would like nothing better than the Islamic Terrorists overrun Israel and take “this problem” off their hands.
If one can’t recognize the difference between Pakistan and Israel (compared one to another) - I would say that their mental faculties are severely limited - or - they are one of the ISRAEL HATERS that Israel has to contend with in addition to having the whole Muslim world trying to get rid of the very existence of Israel.
Yes, all too well aware.
It’s somewhere between ridiculous and disgusting.
I hope you’re not accusing me of hating Israel. That would be beneath you.
I do recognize that Israel’s allegiance is to our wallet...and if any larger one was offered, Bibi Netanyahu would run to it.
But, that’s okay. He’ just looking out for the best interests of his nation state.
I wish him Godspeed, always.
Keep in mind that Israel didn't just change their statement after Pollard was arrested and sentenced. He was in prison for nearly a decade before he was granted citizenship, and the Israeli only admitted he was working for Israel in 1998 when Netanyahu was trying to make a deal with Bill Clinton to get him released.
Based on what I've read and heard since then, one of the things that may be more than just a coincidence was a strange side story to the Clinton-Lewinsky affair that culminated in Clinton's impeachment in 1998. The Starr Report contained a small reference to a comment that was made in March of 1997 during a phone conversation between Clinton and Lewinsky, in which Clinton told her that he suspected a foreign embassy was tapping his telephone conversations. There have been a number of allegations over the years since then about the Mossad tapping the White House phones for the sole purpose of blackmailing the president.
Not everyone who says this about Israel being just like Pakistan - as far as the USA is concerned — may be an ISRAEL HATER ... but there is no question that the person has “bought into” the Israel haters’ arguments and “talking points”.
Israel is no more of an ally to the U.S. than Pakistan is. That doesn't mean that there's no difference between the two. It means that neither one of them has any more of a claim on U.S. loyalty than the other.
If true, huge mistake.
Let him rot.
We're giving the Izzies a major traitor, in exchange for bupkis.
Sound good to you? Not me. Not from an American POV, anyway.
The whole deal stinks on all ends. The only winners are the Pali scum.
Nonsense. Total emotional nonsense.
Piddling argle-bargle. A piffling quibble. Pollard committed espionage and was convicted of same. He committed treason.
Yes, yes, yes -- This isn't the Article III language about treason; but notice that Article III does not DEFINE treason, but only restricts the grounds on which a conviction for treason -- in time of war, for instance -- can be obtained.
Article III does not define treason.
On the other hand, even with its restrictions, an arguable case for treason could be brought in Kerry's case.
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