Mitt Romney

Sheldon Adelson, the American Jewish billionaire and close friend of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, has asked Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney to publicly demand the release of Israeli spy Jonathan Pollard, according to The Daily Beast.

Mitt Romney

Romney refused the request, saying he “could not consider the Pollard situation because he doesn’t have access to the classified information,” the report said, quoting an unnamed source.

Forwarding the News

Thoughtful, balanced reporting from the Forward and around the web, bringing you updated news and analysis each day.

Terms(Required)

I agree to the Forward's Terms of Service and Privacy Policy

Email(Required)

According the report, Romney has also refused other Israel-related requests from Adelson, who reportedly also asked Romney to state that the Israeli-Palestinian peace talks are a waste of time because the Palestinians are unwilling to make peace, and also to make a firm commitment to move the U.S. Embassy to Jerusalem.

The Daily Beast report, which was based on information received from a Republican donor and associates of both Adelson and Romney, seems to be aimed at demonstrating that Romney is not controlled by Adelson, even though the latter has already donated tens of millions of dollars to Romney’s campaign. These donations have generated substantial criticism, given Adelson’s right-wing views regarding the Israeli-Palestinian peace process.

For more, go to Haaretz.com

A message from our CEO & publisher Rachel Fishman Feddersen

I hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, I’d like to ask you to please support the Forward’s award-winning, nonprofit journalism during this critical time.

The coming year promises to be filled with more complex and historic developments. We are entering an era where independent, fact-based Jewish journalism will be more important than ever. We need to be ready for whatever 2025 will bring, and with your help, we can be.

We’ve set a goal to raise $260,000 by December 31. That’s an ambitious goal, but one that will give us the resources we need to invest in the high quality news, opinion, analysis and cultural coverage that isn’t available anywhere else.

If you feel inspired to make an impact, now is the time to give something back. Join us as a member at your most generous level.

—  Rachel Fishman Feddersen, Publisher and CEO

With your support, we’ll be ready for whatever 2025 brings.

$36 $500

$120 $180 Other amount