Peres tells Sephardi chief rabbi he'll do his best to bring about Israeli agent's release; PM: Time has come to free Pollard.
By JPOST.COM STAFFPresident Shimon Peres_311(photo credit: Marc Israel Sellem)
President Shimon Peres said Sunday that regarding the release of Israeli agent Jonathan Pollard, the United States have their own considerations to make that he is not familiar with. During a meeting at the home of Sephardi Chief Rabbi Shlomo Amar, the president said he would do his best to bring about Pollard's release.Pollard is serving a life sentence in the United States for espionage and is in critical condition after he was hospitalized last weekend, Ashkenazi Chief Rabbi Yona Metzger told Army Radio on Sunday, following a conversation with Pollard's wife, Esther. Last week, Metzger called on Jews worldwide to pray for Pollard's freedom during the Passover holiday.Joining the chorus of voices on the issue, Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu said Sunday that the time had come to free Pollard. "I have done a lot to secure his release and will continue with his endeavor," the prime minister stated.Pollard's condition is still unknown, though at least one source has called it "life-threatening," The Jerusalem Post reported last weekend.Peres - who is set to meet with Esther Pollard later Sunday - met with Shas's spiritual leader Rabbi Ovadia Yosef Sunday morning and discussed the imprisoned Israeli agent. Yosef asked of Peres to work for Pollard's release, according to Army Radio.During his meeting with Amar, Peres also spoke about Iran's alleged nuclear weapon program, asserting faith in his US counterpart on the issue.The president expressed his belief that the US cannot afford to allow Tehran to gain control over the Middle East. "It is better to go with the US on the issue of Iran, than without it," Israel Radio quoted him as saying.
