How so? What did Israel learn that it needed to know and couldn’t have learned by asking its former friend, the Untied States?
The U.S. had shut down intelligence sharing a couple of years earlier after Israel bombed their buddy Saddam Hussein’s nuclear reactor.
Pretty much, yeah. At least, they would be if they weren’t letting the lawsuit go through. (I’d also have accepted legally punishing her over here.) I am happy that is occurring.
Not that I consider the situations comparable.
They aren’t particularly compatible; though neither is the US spying on Merkel (in the opposite direction).
Ok. 1) I wonder if they actually did or just said they did, and 2) that doesn’t tell us what they learned that was so critical.
I think it would be much MORE offensive to the US if Israel not only acquired American intelligence but also publicized it, don’t you? 
I get that many Israelis see themselves as an entitled foreign culture.
What would’ve been the smart thing for Israel to do was accept that maintaining Pollard as a spy was a blow to relations with the U.S. and keep subsequent actions in the matter low key. It didn’t work out that way.
I’m not sure why you think stupidity and self-destructive actions are part of your country’s “core principles”.
Since much of this is political in nature let’s move it from GQ to Politics and Elections.
Relations with Israel are so intertwined with American electoral politics that it would be surprising for any pragmatic secretary of Defense or State not to have some ill-feelings toward it. Officials are granted a lot less autonomy when shaping policy concerning Israel than they are with other countries. It needs to be vetted by the White House’s political advisors. It’s more work.
I’m sure that the Israeli government would have been happy to throw Pollard under the bus. When I wrote ‘Israel’ I was referring to the Israeli public, which developed strong feelings about the affair. They were the ones asking for ‘mercy’ for Pollard. The government is just following the electorate, as always.
I would prefer we shut it down. I asked a factual question and got my answer long ago. This is a zombie.
Fair enough. Anyone who wants to continue aspects of this discussion can do so in an appropriate forum.