High Court Postpones Hearing on Pollard Petition

The High Court of Justice Wednesday postponed by two months consideration of a petition by Jonathan Pollard that would require the government to admit that he is an Israeli agent. The decision was made to allow time for Pollard's Israeli attorney to discuss the demand with the Defense Ministry.

During the High Court deliberation Wednesday, state attorney Uzi Fogelman requested that the justices put off the case by six months, but the judges decided that that period would be too long.

Pollard, who served in U.S. Naval Intelligence, was sentenced to life in prison in the United States in 1987 for spying for Israel. In a petition to the High Court submitted five months ago, Pollard claimed that the government violated assurances made by its representatives, including Benjamin Netanyahu, that he would be released as part of a deal with the United States.

Pollard's lawyer retracted claims Wednesday regarding allegations about Attorney General Elyakim Rubinstein's role at the time of the arrest. In the petition, Pollard's lawyer argued that on November 21, 1985, when Pollard felt that American authorities were about to arrest him, he entered the Israeli Embassy in Washington to request asylum. However, Rubinstein, who at the time was a senior diplomat at the embassy, compelled Pollard to leave the compound even though it was surrounded by F.B.I. agents, the lawyer for the Israeli spy said.

See also: Why Attorney General Rubinstein Was Removed: A Clarification