The Campaign to Bring Gershkovich Home: Israel’s First Day of Freedom in the Presence of a Russian Espionage
According to two US officials, the Biden administration is about to declare that Gershkovich was wrongly imprisoned in Russia, and will launch a campaign to bring him home.
The designation, which is expected in the coming days, follows an ongoing internal review of the circumstances surrounding Gershkovich’s arrest, officials said. The US will lead the efforts to get Gershkovich home.
Last week, State Department principal deputy spokesperson Vedant Patel said he did not want to get ahead of the process, but said he did not believe there was any truth to the accusations against Gershkovich. John Kirby is a spokesman for the US National Security Council.
The last two Americans who were wrongly imprisoned in Russia have been released thanks to prisoner swaps. There are some who are worried about a prisoner swap involving American journalists being used to secure Gershkovich’s release, a US official said.
According to a Wall Street Journal article, Gershkovich’s parents fled the Soviet Union before he was born. His lawyers were able to meet with him on Tuesday after he was arrested. The lawyers for the Wall Street Journal told the owners that Gershkovich’s health is good.
Evan had his lawyers meet with him in prison. They said Evan’s health is good, and he is grateful for the outpouring of support from around the world. We are standing by Evan and want his immediate release, the statement said.
Evan was asking questions and helping keep the world informed by giving an accurate account of his time in the region.
The Journal has vehemently denied the espionage charge against Gershkovich, describing his arrest “a vicious affront to a free press” which “should spur outrage in all free people and governments throughout the world.”
As Jewish people prepare to celebrate the first night of Passover, some plan to leave a seat open at their Seders – the meal commemorating the biblical story of Israelites’ freedom from slavery – for a Wall Street Journal reporter recently jailed in Russia.
Rabbi Shmuly Yanklowitz, president of the Scottsdale, Arizona-based Jewish nonprofit Valley Beit Midrash, has joined the effort to encourage other Jews to leave an empty seat at their Seder tables for Gershkovich. He shared the campaign poster on Twitter and has talked about it in his Modern Orthodox Jewish circles. A photograph of the journalist will be on the Seder table, with a seat for him. The Seder plate will include a lock and key and symbolic parts of the meal that tell the story of Passover.
Evan is the man who is trying to be the light of tyranny: From Pharaoh to the Russian Revolution to the end of the Cold War
“We want as many people as possible to know who Evan is and what his situation is,” Raice said. He should be someone they care about, and that they think about.
“We have seen tyrants,” Yanklowitz said. “We have seen tyrants since Pharaoh all the way up to our time with Putin. These tyrants will only stop if there is strong global advocacy and pressure.