2^ THE BUUETIN-^ Thursday. January
Weinb drive
NEW YORK
Advo-^
cates for JpnathaniPpllard are sdzing; upon President George Bush's recent pardon of forniier iinited States! Defence Secretary Ckspar Wdnberger to urge a commutation of the Ufe sentence the former IJ.S. Navy analyst is serving for .piassing classifi«d infbriiiation to jsraef.\.
The initiative comes at a time when those v/ho haVe long argued that Pollard was unjustly sentenced have gained the support of millions from both the Jewish grasisroots and niainstream Jewish communal organiza-tibhs/ [■": ■
• 1 n recent weeIcs, the American Jewish <^pmmit^ tee decided to ask Biish and presidentelect Bill Glihtoh to review the case. And the
board"of Uibrp^ew York Jew- , ish - Community Relations^ Council voted to apprbve^ a letter asking for cleniency. ~tn another show of support, Rep. Gary Ackerrnan (D-N.Y.) has reportedly become the first elected U.S. official tb visit Pollard in Marion Prison.
The waning days of a pre-sidentiaf term are generally seen as the most opportune time to appeal for clemency.^ In addition to Weinbferger-and five others involved in the I ran-Gontra affair. Bush pardoned 18 others who had been convicted of federal crimes ranging from the theft of 12 six-packs of beer to stealing a car.
Pollard and his suppbr-ters have long blaitied Weinberger for Pollard's sentence which they charge
Bnttsli Jews plead for Po^
LONDON — The Board of Deputies of British Jews has appealed to the United States to commute the life sentence of Jonathan Pollard, the former American naVy analyst convicted in 1987 of passing classified information to Israel.
The board said Pollard's case caused "grave disquiet" in Jewish communities worldwide-
In a letter to the U.S; attorney general, the board
Pollackclios^n as^ Conference chair
wrote that it did not suggest that Pollard's guilt be questioned, but was worried about his fate "on grounds of equity and humanity."
Appealing to the U.S. to consider Pollard's health and sanity, the letter went on to state: "He is serving his life sentence in solitary confinement; we understand that he spends his entire life in an underground cell and is confined to his cell for 23 hours a day.''
is grossly disproportionate to those meted out to others convicted of espionage against the U,S.
They cite a still-confidential presentation by the former defence secretary to Aubrey Robinson, the judge who sentenced Pollard. This presentation, say Pollard's supporters, led to the life sentence contravening gov-ernnient promises made in a plea bargain agreement.
"In the memorandum, Weinberger used the term 'treason' in reference to Pollard's activities," said Rabbi Avi Weiss, national president of Amcha — Coalition for Jewish Concerns. "Pollard was not indicted for jeopardizing American security or American security agents."
Ackerrnan also said there exists the possibility that a letter from Weinberger arguing against parole is on file among the court papers that would be considered by a patole board.
Meanwhile, Carol Pollard, Jonathan's sister and head of Citizens for Justice, urged supporters to make their voices heard. She suggested calling CNN's Atlanta and Washington comments lines at 404-827-1500 and 202-898-7900, arid the White House comments line at 202-456-1111.
ISRAEL
• • ■ V Israel Sun
JERUSALEM'S MOUNT HERZL was the scene of a funeral service for 22 Moroccan Jewish Immigrants who drowned three decades ago. They were on route to Israel In 1961 when their ship, the EgoZt sank in heavy storms: King Hassan II of Morocco recently allowed their bodies to be sent to Israel for burial.
Hamas' bloody history
JERUSALEM (JTA) — Hamas, the group claiming responsibility for the kidnapping and murder last month of Israeli border policeman Nissini Tole-dano, has a bloody history of terrorist activity against Israel.
Members of the Muslim
JERUSALEM (JTA) — Yossi Sarid, long theehfaht terrible of Israeli politics, was appointed environment minister by Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin last week, becoming the fourth member of the dovish Meretz bloc to serve in Israel's cabinet.
The environment post has been held uiitil now by Ora Namir of the Labor Party who was moved to the more senior Ministry of Labor
arid Social Welfare, which had been held by the prime minister himself.
In other cabinet shifts, Econornic iplanning Minister Shimon Shetreet of Labor was given an additional portfolio as science minister. The Science Ministry has been held by Meretz's Amnoh Rubinstein, along with the Communications Ministry, which he will continue to hold.
The appointments signify
LESTER pollack; president of the Jewish Community Centres Association, has been elected chairman of the Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations. Pollack, 59, of New York was named unanimously to serve a, one-year term, succeeding Shoshana Cardin.
NEW YORK
The
Anti-Defamation League of B'liai B'rith has urged the Latvian government to speak out against revived antirSemitism in Latvia,
Israel heading to^^T^^
LONDON -
be in Tunisia for the
Israel will next
rOiind of multilateral negotiations on Middle East refugees, marking the first time the talks have been cqndacted in an Arab nation. ■ -'J/.'--.:;^-: V
Israeli officials said they would be. happy to attend the session ih Tunis, scheduled to take place in May, despite the fact that the Palestine Liberation prgan-ization has its headquarters there. '-H-^'-.
reported in the December issue of Life magazine.
The ADL has also suggested that Latvia examine its role in the Holocaust years and cease the distribution of anti-Semitic literature in the educational system.
reported that anti-Semitic insults are being hurled at Jews, and any role of Latvians in the murder of Je ws d uring the. H olocaust is being denied. ;.; \
Rabin's realizatidn that chances of drawing additional parties into the coalition are slim for the time being. The premier had been holding the labor and social welfare portfolio vacant in the hope that the United Torah Judaism party would join the government.
Safid denied suggestions in the media and the political community that his. support for last month's cabinet decision to deport 415 Moslem fundamentalists to Lebanon was in some way
connected to his ihinisterial appointment.
Discussions were also under way. concerning the Ministry of Religious Affairs, with Rabin expected to appoint a Shas deputy minister to run this always-controversial portfolio.
fundanientalist organiza-tion are linked to the abduction and murder of Israeli soldiers Avi Sasportas and
Ilari Sa'adon in February and May 1989, and the killing of thriee workers at a Jaffa aluminutii factory in December 1990.
More recently, the group has clainied responsibility for two December aihbushes on Isriaeliairmy jeeps, killing three soldiers near Gaza and another soldier near Hebron.
In an eiarlier attack, army reservist Shmuel Geresh was killed while on duty at an observation post at the Tomb of the Patriarchs in Hebron. And last November, a largerscale disaster was averted when police discovered and defused a Haihas car bomb in Or Yehuda. 11
Hamas wasfounded soon. after the beginning of the intifada in December 1987 by Sheik Ahmed Yassin, now serving a life sentence in an Israeli prison in .connection with the murders of Sasportas and Sa'adon.
Under the banner of Islam, Hamas opposes not only Israel but the Palestine Liberation Organization and carries out executions of Arabs suspected of collaboration with Israel.
A
Rabbi Gottspeil, a long-winded speaker, used a judge's
gavel: to restore order during his endless sermons. One Shabbos, the shul was restlessly abuzz after 45 minutes of his oratory. He rapped, so vigorously to quiet the congregation that the head of the gavel flew off, accidentally striking Goldfarb in the front row, where he had been peacief ully sleeping. Nonplussed, the rabbi used the subsequent hush of tlie kehilla to continue his drasha.
Goldfarb, eyes glazed over and barely conscious, turned to his neighbor and reinarked, "You better hit me again— I can still hekr him.*'
magazine described the return pf paramilitary groups, including a goyern^ ment-armed ttome Guard that has two units of "Old Warriors," former members of the WafferrSS.
)prts of the resurgence of paramilitary groups such as the Aizsargi, which helped the Nazis round up the Jews of Riga and conducted pogroms on its own against Jews, are indeed chilling," said ADL national director Abraham Foxman.
Arad still alive?
JERUSALEM /-^ There are signs that missing Israeli navigator Ron. Arad is still alive, American national security _ adviser" Brent Scowcroft tolda group f rom the Gonference of Presidents of American Jewish Organizations. He did not elaborate during the meeting, the last of the George Bush administration.
toll up
JERUSALEM ^Israeli forces killed 923 Palestinians, including 186 minors, over the past five years of the m/i/a^fl, according to information quoted in the lisraeli daily Ha'aretz, The five years of the intifada have seen 675 Palestinians killed by other Palestinians, usually on suspicion of cooperating with Israeli authorities. In 1992, Palestinians killed 197 of their fellows, up from 154 in 199 L
New ambassador
JERUSALEM (JTA) Israel's ambassador to Washington, Zalman Shp-val, will end his tour of duty Feb. 5. He will be succeeded by Itamar Rabinovitch, a former Tel Aviv University rector and chief Israeli negotiator in the peace talks with Syria. .
JERUSALEM
The
Abba Eban Centre for Israeli Diplomacy has been dedicated at the Hebrew University's Mount Scopus campus. The centre will house Eban's privatie collection of articles; documents and letters from throughout his career. '
GLOBAL
Third neo-Nazi group banned
BONN — In a widening crackdown on violence against foreigners, German authorities have banned a third neo-Nazi group.
The outlawing of the National Offensive, a group operating mainly in Saxony and Bavaria, followed police raids on offices and apartments in which large quantities of light weapons, propaganda and illegal Nazi symbols were found. Also banned are the German Alternative and the National Front. • ■ /■■rr,
Accused Nazi's
^ Israel^Sun
ON HIS SECOND vl8lt to Israel, French President Francois Mitterrand meets Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin In his Jerusalem office. The two-day trip by Mitterrand, who first Saw Israel in 19iB2, was viewed as providing opportunities to open up Israeli-French cooperation in various fields.
SYDNEY, Australia —
-An Australian court has rejected the last appeal by "accused Nazi Ivan Polyuk-hovich, paving the way for him to stand trial fpr war crimes. . ., ^ •   ■ '
Polyukhovich is accused of a role in the deaths of 85(0 Jews in the Ukraine between August and September 1942. He was charged under Australia's War Crimes Act with 24 counts of murder.
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