Jonathan Pollard enters Knesset race with Israel First party

Jonathan Pollard, the former U.S. Navy analyst convicted of spying for Israel, officially entered the race for a Knesset seat on August 23, 2026, announcing his candidacy with the new Israel First party led by former deputy foreign minister Sharren Haskel. The announcement, made near the Western Wall in Jerusalem, marks a formal step into electoral politics for a figure whose espionage case remains a potent symbol in Israeli national discourse.

Pollard, 72, served 30 years in a U.S. federal prison after pleading guilty in 1987 to passing vast amounts of classified intelligence to Israel. He moved to Israel in 2020 following his release. In his statement, he cited the failures surrounding the October 7, 2023, Hamas-led attack as his primary motivation. "On October 7, I saw that the country had been abandoned and betrayed," Pollard declared, criticizing members of the Knesset for what he described as a lack of accountability. He praised Haskel as someone dedicated to "protecting the land and the people of Israel" and pledged his support for her party's platform.

Haskel, who recently departed the New Hope faction to establish her own political movement, welcomed the endorsement....