Netanyahu speaks to Pollard, asks him when he’ll move to Israel

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office releases a video of him speaking on the phone with Jonathan Pollard, in which he tells the recently freed former spy that Israel is waiting for him to move here.

“When are we gonna see you here, we are waiting for you,” he says in English. Pollard’s reply, which causes Netanyahu to chuckle, cannot be heard.

“You should feel comfortable and you should really feel at home,” he adds.

He also promises to make sure Pollard’s wife Esther gets the cancer treatment she needs.

Speaking to Esther in Hebrew, he says “when you return to Israel, it will be a big moment for us.”

Pollard served 30 years in prison for spying on the US on behalf of Israel, and has been on parole for the last five years.

He was freed from parole last week, and his lawyer has said he plans on moving to Israel, where he had become a cause celebre.

Some have cautioned Israel against overtly feting Pollard, which could strain ties with the US.