Arutz7 Dismays Pollard

J4JP Responds With A Chronology of Events

Justice4JP Release - August 5, 2005

Jonathan Pollard was astonished and dismayed by a report in Arutz7 (5 August 2005, ISRAEL SOUGHT EMERGENCY LEAVE FOR POLLARD).

Arutz7 contacted the Israeli Foreign Ministry and accepted a spokesperson's claim that "a process" was on-going to secure a furlough for Jonathan Pollard, but "unfortunately, Pollard's mother-in-law died in the meantime." Nothing could be further from the truth.

If Arutz7 had had the decency to contact Jonathan Pollard's representatives for a reaction before publishing this disingenuous claim, Arutz7 would have understood that the Foreign Ministry was deceiving them.

As the chronology below shows, the only "process" undertaken by the Foreign Ministry was stalling for time and doing nothing.

Moreover, if Arutz7 had afforded Jonathan Pollard the simple courtesy of contacting Esther Pollard, she would have pointed out that Foreign Minister Silvan Shalom met with US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice on July 22nd and failed to take the opportunity to make this urgent to request to her. This was, in fact, the only appropriate level for the request to be made, if a positive response was to be gained.

Here is the chronology of events:

• 12 July 2005: an urgent request is made by Jonathan Pollard to Foreign Minister Silvan Shalom for his help in seeking a furlough to enable Pollard to visit his dying mother-in-law.

• 13 July 2005: Pollard receives confirmation that both FM Shalom and PM Sharon have received his request. He is told that instructions have been given to the Washington Embassy to act upon it.

• 13 July to 15 July 2005: No action whatsoever is taken by the Embassy. This is confirmed by a phone call from the Embassy to the Consulate on July 15th.

• 15 July 2005 (AFTERNOON): Too late to do anything in Washington, the Embassy finally contacts the Consulate in Atlanta and asks the Consulate to find out from the Pollards what steps they have taken before the Embassy takes any action of their own.

• 16 July and 17 July 2005: No action is taken by the Embassy.

• 18 July 2005 (Approx. 11:00 AM): Jonathan Pollard personally calls the Consulate to inform the Foreign Ministry that his mother-in-law has passed away.

• 18 July 2005: Notice of funeral is sent by J4JP to the Consulate, which in turn forwards the message to Foreign Ministry.

• 18 July 2005: In his AM phone call to the Consulate, Pollard pleads for stepped-up efforts to secure a furlough so that he can attend his mother-in-law's funeral.

  Pollard pleads to at very least be permitted to be present in Montreal for the Shiva.

  Pollard's urgent requests are forwarded to the Foreign Minister by the Consulate.

  In the days and weeks to come, Pollard never receives any response from any Israeli official to these pleas.

• 22 July 2005: Foreign Minister Silvan Shalom meets with US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and fails to take the opportunity to make the request for a furlough for Pollard.

• 22 July to 2 August 2005: COMPLETE SILENCE.

  No contact with the Pollards whatsoever is made by the Foreign Ministry or the Consulate.

  Not a single Israeli official even expresses condolences.

• 2 August 2005: Foreign Ministry announces to media that it is NOW, at this time, seeking a furlough to enable Jonathan Pollard to visit his dying mother in law.

• 2 August to 4 August 2005: Justice4JP responds vigorously, pointing out the absurdity of the Foreign Ministry's claim to be working on a furlough for Pollard to say good-bye to his mother-in-law, who they KNEW had died two weeks earlier.

  J4JP provides the facts to all of the media - including Arutz7 - in a series of releases and news items which include:

  • Shalom is Expoiting My Tragedy: Maariv
  • Israel: We're Helping Pollard Visit 'Sick Mother-in-Law'
  • Israel Tramples On the Grave of Pollard’s Mother-in-Law
  • Jonathan Pollard's Letter to Silvan Shalom
  • Shalom Ignores Gut-wrenching Appeal For Compassionate Leave

• 5 August 2005: Jonathan Pollard is astounded to read Arutz's report ISRAEL SOUGHT EMERGENCY LEAVE FOR POLLARD which repeats the deceptive claims of a foreign ministry spokesperson (without giving Pollard the courtesy of a response) and essentially provides a fig leaf for the Foreign Ministry's exploitation of the Pollards' tragedy.

The Pollards also request that readers please recirculate and reprint this message widely.

With thanks on behalf of the Pollards.

Justice4JP