Photo Credit: State Dept. briefing screen capture
Said Arikat, State Dept. correspondent for Al-Quds, in State Dept. press briefing, April 1, 2014.

THE BRIEFING CONTINUES:

QUESTION: (at 3:55) There’s a fundamental difference here. I mean, as we’ve talked before, the Israelis have raised the issue of Jonathan Pollard’s release annually, perennially, quite frequently.

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MS. HARF: Consistently. Mm-hmm.

QUESTION: Right. The difference here is that it is now not being pushed off the table by the Americans. I think previous presidents have said thanks for bringing it up, we’re not going to consider it, or whatever. Even two – I think a couple of months ago or some time ago President Obama made a similar statement, saying we’re looking at his case and thanks for your – thanks for playing, basically. This seems to be a different situation.

MS. HARF: Well, I’m not going to characterize what the discussions consist of on this or any other topic that are going on right now or sort of further characterize them in any way than I just said. Obviously, the team on the ground is talking to both sides about a variety of issues, and on this I just think we’re not going to have much more today.

QUESTION: Would you agree that this seems to be a different situation than it has been in the past when the Israelis have raised it?

MS. HARF: I – in terms of Pollard?

QUESTION: Yes.

MS. HARF: I don’t want to characterize it that way. Obviously, in any peace process – this is a peace process that’s going on – been going on for decades now. Broadly speaking, not specific to Pollard, it’s different every time you take a look at it. The issues – the issues don’t change, but how you get to final agreement is obviously a topic that there’s still some work to be done on, because we clearly haven’t gotten there yet. So I don’t want to compare it to any previous situation, don’t want to further characterize the conversation in any other way.

QUESTION: Okay. Would you care to respond to experts and former U.S. officials who have been involved in these types of negotiations who question the wisdom of bringing this up at this point in the negotiations, just to even continue the talks as opposed to a final agreement or a final settlement, which is, I think in the past with Wye River, is what was the concern then?

MS. HARF: Well, again, as I said, the President has not made a decision to release Jonathan Pollard, and I would caution anyone not involved in the talks from presuming to know what’s going on in them, even if people have been involved in them in the past. So I guess there’s a lot of analysis out there. Quite frankly, that’s not what we’re focused on. What we’re focused on right now is the teams on the ground. They are talking to both sides. They are trying to make progress. And we are looking forward to the Secretary going back tomorrow.

QUESTION: Marie, is —

MS. HARF: Mm-hmm.

QUESTION: — you said the President has not made his decision. But is the Administration actively discussing and thinking about springing Pollard?

MS. HARF: I don’t have any more details for you on what discussions on any issue look like on the ground.

QUESTION: And one follow-up to your question, Lara, was in terms of this being unprecedented. Why is the United States as a mediator in this discussion actively taking such an active role? And shouldn’t this – shouldn’t it be between the Palestinians and the Israelis? Why is the United States having to put something like a prisoner release on the table?

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Lori Lowenthal Marcus is a contributor to the JewishPress.com. A graduate of Harvard Law School, she previously practiced First Amendment law and taught in Philadelphia-area graduate and law schools. You can reach her by email: [email protected]