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-Caveat Lector- Judge could dismiss AIPAC caseWASHINGTON - In an unusual move, a US judge has scheduled a second oral hearing on the request of former AIPAC lobbyists to dismiss the case against them.
Judge T.S. Ellis of the US District Court in Alexandria, Virginia, is to hear on Friday for the second time the arguments of both sides regarding the use of the 1917 Espionage Act to prosecute Steve Rosen and Keith Weissman, both former employees of the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC).
In the first hearing, held on March 24, the judge agreed that prosecuting two civilians for receiving oral classified information might involve issues concerning the First Amendment, since there was not much of difference between lobbyists receiving classified information and journalists who do the same.
Ellis said there was no precedent for such a case and that the prosecution was entering "unchartered waters." He called on the prosecution to submit a detailed response to the defense's request to dismiss the case.
After receiving the government's new brief, which cited a case from the 1950s in which a Russian spy was charged for hearing classified information without any documents passing hands, Ellis decided to call both sides to the courtroom again to discuss the motion for the second time.
If the motion to dismiss is not granted, the trial of Rosen and Weissman is set to begin on May 23.
---------------FBI wants to search papers of late columnistBy MARK SHERMAN
Associated Press, 4/19/2006http://www.buffalonews.com/editorial/20060419/1065466.asp
WASHINGTON - Not long after columnist Jack Anderson's funeral, FBI agents called his widow to say they wanted to search his papers. They were looking for confidential government information he might have acquired in a half-century of investigative reporting. The agents expressed interest in documents that would aid the government's case against two former lobbyists for the American Israel Public Affairs Committee, or AIPAC, who have been charged with disclosing classified information, said Kevin Anderson, the columnist's son.In addition, the agents told the family they planned to remove from the columnist's archive - which has yet to be cataloged - any document they came across that was stamped "secret" or "confidential," or was otherwise classified."He would be rolling over in his grave to think that the FBI was going to go crawling through his papers willy-nilly," the younger Anderson told the Associated Press in an interview Tuesday.FBI Special Agent Richard Kolko, a spokesman here, confirmed that the bureau wants to search the Anderson archive and remove classified materials before they are made available to the public. "It has been determined that, among the papers, there are a number of U.S. government documents containing classified information," Kolko said, declining to say how the FBI knows.The documents contain information about sources and methods used by U.S. intelligence agencies, he said. "Under the law, no private person may possess classified documents that were illegally provided to them. There is no legal basis under which a third party could retain them as part of an estate. The documents remain the property of the U.S. government," Kolko said.Anderson died in December at age 83 after a career in which he broke several big scandals and earned a place on President Richard M. Nixon's "enemies list." Authorities on several occasions tried to find the source of leaked information that became a staple of his syndicated column.Given his history, Anderson's family might already have been skeptical when the FBI came calling.The timing only deepened suspicion. The AIPAC investigation dates back at least five years."And right after he dies, they contact his widow," Kevin Anderson said.Still, when the FBI first called Olivia Anderson and said that it was a matter of national security, the family was willing to consider the request. Jack Anderson himself cooperated with the FBI from time to time, his son said.The more the Andersons learned, however, the less willing they were to help. Lawyers for the family are preparing a letter to the FBI declining to cooperate, Kevin Anderson said. The story was first reported by the Chronicle of Higher Education."We don't think there's anything related to the current investigation there, based on the time frame and dad's poor health," he said. "They made it clear they want to look at everything and, by the way, if we find anything classified, we'll have to remove it. I suspect that's their real intention, to get through these papers before they become public."
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19:12 Apr 10, '06 / 12 Nisan 5766http://www.israelnationalnews.com/news.php3?id=101797
Arutz Sheva, April 10, 2006
Speaking on Channel Two's Monday morning television talk program, Esther Pollard said, "Someone who is very close to President Bush came to me last night and said that Bush is ready to free Jonathan even in time for the upcoming Passover holiday [which starts Wednesday night] - as long as Olmert makes an official request."
She said that the source with whom she spoke is "known very well to Mr. Olmert as trustworthy and having close ties with the U.S. President."
"I am willing to meet with Olmert even today," Mrs. Pollard said, "if he invites me, in order to give him the information I have."
A staffer in the Prime Minister's Office told Arutz-7 that such a meeting "would be considered" if Mrs. Pollard would turn to them and ask for one.
MK Uri Ariel also called on Olmert today to ask President Bush for Pollard's release.
The Committee to Free Jonathan Pollard faxed a letter to Olmert today, entitled, "Re: An Urgent Official Request to President Bush to Release Pollard." The committee writes, "According to the information we have, Bush is willing to respond favorably to a request of this nature, and is anticipating such a request from you."
The letter also noted that before the Moslem holy month of Ramadan, the United States freed 1,000 Iraqis as a good-will holiday gesture to the Sunnis.
"We are surprised," the Committee writes, "that you have not yet officially asked President Bush to free Jonathan Pollard as a Passover holiday gesture to the Jewish people... The fact that Israel, after 21 years, does not make an official and serious request for its agent's release in honor of the holiday gives the impression that we are not interested in him."
The Committee adds that Pollard has been imprisoned far longer than those who were freed after spying for the United States' enemies.
Jonathan Pollard was a U.S. Navy intelligence analyst in the 1980's when he came across information vital to Israel's security that was not being transferred to the Jewish state - contrary to an intelligence-sharing agreement between the U.S. and Israel. He then passed along the information to Israel, ultimately helping Israel to protect itself from Iraqi missiles. He was later caught while trying to find asylum in the Israeli Embassy in Washington. Despite a plea bargain agreement, he received a life sentence with no parole for an offense that usually nets 2-4 years. In failing health, Jonathan Pollard is now in his 21st year of that sentence.
Despite the wide exposure his cause has received, many in the Jewish community continue to view Pollard as a traitor who deserves to remain in prison. He continues to be accused of having caused major harm to U.S. interests, including endangering American agents in the Soviet Union.
However, it is now known that a central force behind the promulgation of this impression was the man who actually betrayed the said U.S. agents in Russia - CIA agent-turned-KGB mole Aldrich Ames. Ames, finally arrested for spying in 1994, revealed to the Russians the names of every American spy in the Soviet Union, leading to the execution of several of them. As former Justice Department attorney John Loftus has documented, it was Ames himself, before he was caught, who was assigned the task of preparing the damage assessment of Pollard's activities - and he used the opportunity to attribute to Pollard the crimes that he himself had committed.
Speaking with Channel Two today, Mrs. Pollard had harsh words for incoming Knesset Member Rafi Eitan, head of the Pensioners Party. The Pensioners won an unexpected seven Knesset seats in the recent election because of what is felt to be a protest vote by young and/or disenchanted voters. Eitan was Pollard's handler in the U.S. on behalf of the Mossad; Pollard charges that Eitan later held up a document that could have led to his release.
"He has shaken off his responsibility for Jonathan ever since the day of his capture," Mrs. Pollard said about Eitan today. She charged that Eitan once said that if he were present when Pollard tried to find asylum in the Israeli Embassy, he would have "shot him in the head, thus ending the Pollard affair before it even began."
Asked about Pollard last week, Eitan said only, "I would very much like to see this man go free." He has also been quoted as saying that he has worked for Pollard's release, and that he hopes that when he is appointed as Cabinet minister in Olmert's new government, he would be able to use his influence to have Pollard freed.
Jonathan Pollard himself told Maariv newspaper that Eitan "betrayed me and abandoned me for 21 years," and even testified falsely against him to the Americans.www.ctrl.org DECLARATION & DISCLAIMER ========== CTRL is a discussion & informational exchange list. Proselytizing propagandic screeds are unwelcomed. Substanceânot soap-boxingâplease! These are sordid matters and 'conspiracy theory'âwith its many half-truths, mis- directions and outright fraudsâis used politically by different groups with major and minor effects spread throughout the spectrum of time and thought. That being said, CTRLgives no endorsement to the validity of posts, and always suggests to readers; be wary of what you read. CTRL gives no credence to Holocaust denial and nazi's need not apply.
Jonathan Pollard's attorney said Sunday that the United States would release the convicted [Israeli] spy if Pollard's onetime handler, Rafi Eitan, handed over a secret document which details broad Israeli government involvement in the affair.
U.S. and Israeli officials Sunday denied media reports that Israel may free jailed Tanzim leader Marwan Barghouti in exchange for the Bush administration releasing Pollard, who is serving a life sentence for treason.
Pollard's wife, Esther, was quoted Sunday as saying that Eitan, now in line for a cabinet ministry as head of the Pensioners party, had told her that the only mistake Eitan had made in the affair was not to have "fired a bullet into [Pollard's] head," to keep the affair from being exposed. Eitan denied the account as "deceitful, fabricated, and utterly lacking in logic."Hours later, Pollard's Israeli attorney, Nitzana Darshan-Leitner, told the radio that "Rafi Eitan has in his hands a document that the Americans are insisting that they must receive. They insisted in the past, they are insisting to this day. In fact, in this we see the stance of the government of Israel and of Pollard's handlers.
According to Leitner, "Had the Israel come and told the Americans the true version, what they want to receive, Pollard would have been released."
On Passover Eve last week, Leitner sent a letter to Prime Minister-designate Ehud Olmert asking him not to appoint Eitan as a minister in the new cabinet. Leitner has threatened to petition the High Court of Justice against any such appointment. She claims that it would disgrace the government if Eitan, Pollard's recruiter and handler, were given a portfolio.
"Pollard's handlers threw all of the responsibility for this enterprise, for this operation, onto Pollard himself. They claimed that this was a one-man operation, they claimed that the prime ministers and all those who benefited from this information, were not privy to the secret. For this reason, the U.S. buried Pollard under an indeterminate life sentence."
Asked if the secret document lists all the israeli officials who knew of the Pollard affair, Leitner said she could not divulge the contents of the document, but said "Israel stands by its refusal, still dumping all the responsibility on Pollard ... even though we know that all the prime ministers knew of this matter."
"They must tell the Americans, gentlemen, it was Israel who spied on the United States -- not Pollard, but Israel."
U.S., Israel deny reports of swap plan
A spokesman for the U.S. Embassy in Tel Aviv, referring to the media reports of a proposal to swap Barghouti and Pollard, dismissed them as "speculation."
"The Pollard case is over. He is serving a sentence," said spokesman Stewart Tuttle. "As for Barghouti, that is something for the Israelis to decide."
Israeli political sources said such a swap was first proposed in 2004 by aides to then-Prime Minister Ariel Sharon, but was rejected outright by mid-level U.S. officials.
Pollard's wife said Sunday that President George Bush had proposed releasing Pollard, but that Israel had refused to move the matter forward.
Army Radio reported Sunday morning that Israel would propose the exchange soon.
"We know Bush. He is a religious man. Through a contact person who is very close to us and who has his ear, he proposed freeing Jonathan for seder night this year," Esther Pollard told the radio, referring to the eve of Passover, last Wednesday night.
"We passed the message to the prime minister, but instead of this, we see the headlines that perhaps Pollard will be released in exchange for Barghouti."
The radio said Israel would hope to convince the Bush administration that freeing Barghouti, a senior Fatah figure, would weaken the new Palestinian government under Hamas.
Barghouti's wife, Fadwa, also voiced skepticism about a swap. "This is perhaps the fourth time I have heard such rumors," she told Reuters, but added that releasing Barghouthi and other Palestinian prisoners would offer "a political breakthrough."
Israeli officials believe that in several months, when the chaos in the Palestinian Authority increases, the U.S. will agree to release Pollard in exchange for Barghouti, serving five life sentences plus 40 years in an Israeli jail for involvement in deadly terrorist acts, the radio said at the weekend.
The officials said it was still too early to put such a deal on the table, but when the tide turned against the Hamas government, a situation could develop in which Barghouti's release could restore Fatah to power in the PA. In such an event, the officials said, the Americans were likely to agree to a Pollard-Barghouti deal.
However, Esther Pollard said Israel was uninterested in Pollard, rather in Barghouti. "Every time the government wants to push this or that initiative, suddenly they bring up Pollard's name," she said, speaking in Hebrew.
"This is all about Barghouti, not Pollard. They want to free Barghouti," she said. "Barghouti will go free and Jonathan will stay in prison."
The officials confirmed that two years ago, around the time that Barghouti was sentenced, the idea of releasing him in exchange for Pollard was raised.
An Israeli official mentioned the idea in conversation with a U.S. counterpart, without prior approval from former prime minister Ariel Sharon. The U.S. official rejected the offer categorically, but Israeli officials believe nevertheless that the entry of Hamas into the PA government will lead the U.S. to change its position.
In the letter, Leitner claims that the U.S. refusal to release Pollard is based on the fact that Eitan refuses to hand over to the U.S. a specific document in his possession.Let us please be civil and as always, Caveat Lector. ======================================================================== Archives Available at:
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