US to free Israeli spy in November
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E-mail Xinhua, July 29, 2015
Convicted Israeli spy, Jonathan Pollard, is due to be released November 20, after 30 years in jail, Israeli Justice Minister Ayelet Shaked said Tuesday.
Shaked tweeted on her twitter account that the U.S.' Parole Commission has decided to free the Jewish American spy.
Pollard's lawyer confirmed in a statement that the spy will be released on November 20 or 21, adding that according to his parole conditions he won't be allowed to leave the United States for five years.
Pollard's ex-wife, Anne Pollard, hailed the decision a "miracle." In a telephone interview with Israel's Channel 2 TV news, she said the decision was "absolutely unbelievable," adding she was "very, very excited."
Convicted in 1987 for transferring thousands of classified military documents to Israel when Pollard was a U.S. Naval Intelligence officer, he was sentenced to life imprisonment.
Israeli government officials have since unsuccessfully repeatedly implored successive American presidential administrations for his early release.
The U.S. Justice Department indicated that it does not object to Pollard's release once he becomes eligible for parole in November.
The move comes amidst rising tensions between Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's government and the Obama administration over Iran's nuclear deal, denounced by Netanyahu as a "historic mistake."
Shaked denied Saturday that Pollard's potential release was a gesture from the U.S. to mitigate Israeli anger over the nuclear deal.
"There is no political or diplomatic involvement here," Ayelet Shaked told Channel 2.
"It is an American legal procedure: the parole commission needs to approve Pollard's release from prison after 30 years," she added.
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