Pollard's Jubilee Birthday Party

Arutz7 - July 23, 2004

Several dozen activists seeking the release of Jonathan Pollard celebrated his 50th birthday (the 8th of Av, this coming Monday) in front of the United States Consulate on Agron St. in Jerusalem last night. "We wished to remind the government, Prime Minister Sharon and of course Jonathan Pollard himself that we have not forgotten him," said one of the young organizers, "and that we will not rest until he is free."

Celebrating with balloons, placards, and a cake, the group marched up the street to the Prime Minister's Residence. The protestors presented the cake and a strongly-worded letter to the guard to be given to Prime Minister Sharon, but the guard refused to accept the delivery. A representative of the group then read the letter aloud, noting that ever since Pollard was thrown out of the Israeli Embassy in Washington in 1985 while seeking asylum, Sharon has "thrown him out" several more times. These included Sharon's having not taken to US President Bush a Knesset petition signed by all 110 of the non-Arab party MKs asking for Pollard's release; the lack of ambassadorial visits to Pollard; and the like

The letter to Prime Minister Sharon concluded [in a paraphrased version],

"We ask you to have the Ambassador deliver this cake to Jonathan Pollard so that he may celebrate his birthday. However, if you choose again not to dispatch the Ambassador, you may eat it yourself - something which has characterized your handling of this issue for a long time."