A planned visit to Israel by US Vice President Mike Pence was called off despite Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu pinning high hopes on it.
Pence’s decision caused a huge disappointment in Tel Aviv, which had been expecting a generous US “gift” to help Netanyahu in his electoral campaign.
Earlier this month, it was reported that the US vice president planned to visit a number of countries, including Israel from January 10 to 13.
Though his stop in Israel was never officially confirmed by the US Embassy, Israeli security agencies had begun preparations for the visit.
As president of the Senate, Pence will preside over the Jan. 6 session and declare the winner of the US elections.
On Wednesday, Netanyahu greeted ex-spy Jonathan Pollard at the tarmac at Ben Gurion Airport, hailing his arrival to Israel and granting him Israeli citizenship paperwork.
This was seen as a gift to Israel by President Donald Trump, who is set to leave the White House.
“We are ecstatic,” Pollard said in the video. “We hope to become productive citizens as soon and as quickly as possible, to get on with our lives here.”
“Now you can start life anew, with freedom and happiness. Now you are home,” Netanyahu said, presenting Pollard with an Israeli residency permit.
Pollard, a civilian intelligence analyst for the US Navy, sold military secrets to Israel while working at the Pentagon in the 1980s.
He was given a life sentence and US defense and intelligence officials consistently argued against his release. But after serving 30 years in federal prison, he was released on Nov. 20, 2015, and placed on a five-year parole period that ended in November.
