Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Saturday welcomed the lifting of parole restrictions on Jonathan Pollard, 66, the former US Navy analyst convicted of spying for Israel in the 1980s, and said he expects him to come to Israel soon.
The move will free him to travel to Israel, which his advocates say has long been Pollard's wish.
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His lawyer, Eliot Lauer, said in a statement that Pollard's parole conditions for the last five years have included a curfew and a wrist monitor that tracks his whereabouts, as well as restrictions on where he could work.
"We are grateful and delighted that our client is finally free of any restrictions, and is now a free man in all respects. We look forward to seeing our client in Israel," Lauer said.
Lauer told Channel 12 TV in Israel that Pollard was "ecstatic" and determined to move to Israel but that it would possibly take several months because Pollard's wife is undergoing medical treatment for cancer.
Pollard, a former civilian intelligence analyst for the US Navy, sold military secrets to Israel while working at the Pentagon in the 1980s. He was arrested in 1985 after trying unsuccessfully to gain asylum at the Israeli Embassy in Washington and pleaded guilty. The espionage affair embarrassed Israel and tarnished its relations with the United States for years.
Pollard was given a life sentence, and US defense and intelligence officials consistently argued against releasing Pollard. But after serving 30 years in federal prison, he was released on Nov. 20, 2015, and placed on parole.
In a statement issued Saturday evening, Netanyahu said he had worked for Pollard's release for many years. He did not provide a firm date when Pollard might arrive.
"The prime minister expects to see Jonathan Pollard in Israel soon, and together with all Israelis, extends his best wishes to him and his wife Esther," Netanyahu's office said.
Israel granted Pollard citizenship in 1995, and Netanyahu had tried in the past to bring him to Israel as part of diplomatic negotiations. In his statement, Netanyahu thanked his ambassador to the US, Ron Dermer, for conducting talks with the American government.
In a statement Friday, the US Parole Commission said it had ended Pollard's parole conditions after five years after finding "no evidence to conclude that he is likely to violate the law."
Netanyahu's statement was echoed by other Israeli ministers and by President Reuven Rivlin.
"Over the years we have shared in Jonathan Pollard's pain, and felt a responsibility and commitment to bring about his release. Now we will be able to welcome him and his family home," Rivlin said on Twitter.
Health Minister Yuli Edelstein, who was the first Israeli minister to visit Pollard in prison 23 years ago, when he held the immigration and absorption portfolio, said: "The State of Israel is waiting for Jonathan. This is wonderful and happy news, after the country abandoned him for many long years, we will finally be able to see Jonathan in Israel.
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Former defense minister and Yamina Chairman Naftali Bennett, said, "And the children shall return to their own borders. The State of Israel owes a deep debt to Jonathan Pollard, who gave over 30 years of his life for us, and we are waiting to receive him and embrace him here, on Israeli soil. We are waiting for you, Jonathan.
Efi Lahav, the chairman of the Free Pollard campaign, told Israel Hayom: "I'm thrilled to tears over the news from the US that all restrictions placed on Pollard these past five years have been lifted, making him a free man… After 35 difficult and complicated years, the Pollard affair is coming to an end and off the national agenda. We have been waiting for this news for many years and here it is, finally happening. This is one of the most complex affairs the State of Israel has ever known in terms of US relations, which for many years clouded relations between the two countries, to the point that sometimes Israel's leaders didn't know how to handle such a complicated and sensitive affair."
