"In the wake of Jonathan Pollard's hospitalization, the Simon Wiesenthal Center urges President Obama to immediately release Pollard on humanitarian grounds," said Rabbis Marvin Hier and Abraham Cooper, founder and dean and associate dean of the major Jewish human rights NGO.

"Whatever his crimes were, 26 years is enough. We hope and pray that President Obama will act swiftly and compassionately and release Mr. Pollard promptly," they added. Pollard, who was recently hospitalized, is 57 years old.

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The Simon Wiesenthal Center is one of the largest international Jewish human rights organizations with over 400,000 member families in the United States. It is an NGO at international agencies including the United Nations, UNESCO, the OSCE, the OAS, the Council of Europe and the Latin American Parliament (Parlatino).