With the relationship between the new governments of Israel and the U.S. still not on a stable footing, and in the face of issues that divide rather than unite them, activists for long-time prisoner Jonathan Pollard ask both the government and citizenry of Israel not to forget him. “Especially at this time,” says Asher Mivtzari, a Gush Katif expellee currently living in Shomeriya, “with Pollard’s health constantly worsening, it is critical that the public show him support. Letters, even short ones, are a real boost for him, and can help him get over this next difficult period.” Pollard, who has been in American prison since 1985, was not convicted of treason, but rather of one count of passing classified information to a friendly country – Israel. He is credited with having informed Israel of Iraq's Scud missile plans, enabling Israel to prepare in advance of the dozens of Iraqi attacks in 1991. A group of university students asked Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu to raise the matter of Pollard’s continued incarceration with U.S. President Barack Obama during the two leaders' recent meeting. The letter noted Netanyahu’s efforts on behalf of Pollard in the past, as well as Pollard’s poor and declining health. Gov't and Public are Asked “Though this may be a difficult period,” Mivtzari said, “we ask the government not to let up in its efforts to free Pollard, if only from a humanitarian standpoint. In the meantime, the public should do its share to show him solidarity by writing him letters.” Among the medical problems from which Pollard is suffering are rheumatism, symptoms of glaucoma, bile duct attacks, sinusitis with bleeding, high blood pressure and cholestoral, and severe headaches. Letters, which must be written in English and to which Pollard cannot reply, can be addressed to: Jonathan Pollard 09185-016 P.O.Box 1000 Butner, NC U.S.A. 27509-1000 Zion, Will You Not Cry Out? Pollard himself has written in the past, “As the medieval Jewish poet Rabbi Yehuda HaLevi has written, ‘Zion, will you not cry out for your prisoners?’ If Zion does not do so, this is not the problem of the prisoners – but rather of the entire nation dwelling in Zion!”
