Spy Jonathan Pollard freed after 30 years behind bars

Convicted spy Jonathan Pollard has been released from prison, ending an extraordinary espionage case that complicated American-Israeli relations for 30 years and became a periodic bargaining chip between two allies.

“The people of Israel welcome the release of Jonathan Pollard,” Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in a statement. “As someone who raised Jonathan’s case for years with successive American presidents, I had long hoped this day would come,” he said.

The Federal Bureau of Prisons also confirmed that Pollard was no longer in custody but provided no other details.

Pollard’s release from a prison in Butner, North Carolina came nearly 30 years to the day after his arrest for providing large amounts of classified US government information to Israel.

“I have waited for this day for 30 long years, unbelievable,” Anne, his ex-wife, told Israel’s Army Radio. “It’s an amazing moment.”

Pollard had been granted parole this summer from a life sentence imposed in 1987. His lawyers have said that they have secured a job for him in the New York area, without elaborating. The terms of his parole require him to remain in the United States for five years, though supporters — including Netanyahu and some members of Congress — are seeking permission for him to move to Israel immediately.

His release caps one of the most high-profile spy sagas in modern American history, a case that over the years sharply divided public opinion and became a diplomatic sticking point.

Supporters have long maintained that he was punished excessively for actions taken on behalf of an American ally while critics, including government officials, derided him as a traitor.

“I don’t think there’s any doubt that the crime merited a life sentence, given the amount of damage that Mr Pollard did to the United States government,” said Joseph diGenova, who prosecuted the case as US attorney in Washington DC. “I would have been perfectly pleased if he had spent the rest of his life in jail.”

Seymour Reich, a former president of B’nai Brith International who visited Pollard twice in prison, said his sentence was overly harsh. Like other supporters, he believes Pollard was “double-crossed” into thinking he’d be afforded leniency in exchange for a guilty plea.

Pollard, a Navy intelligence analyst, was arrested on November 21, 1985, after trying unsuccessfully to gain asylum at the Israeli Embassy in Washington. He had drawn the suspicion of a supervisor for handling classified materials unrelated to his duties.

US officials have said Pollard, over a series of months and for a salary, provided intelligence summaries on the capabilities and programs of Israel’s enemies. He pleaded guilty in 1986 to conspiracy to commit espionage.