A spokesman for the Ministry of the Interior said today that an application by Dr. Robert A. Soblen, the convicted American spy, for entry into Israel under the Law of the Return, was under consideration. It was understood, however, that there was no inclination to grant Dr. Soblen an entry visa.
Dr. Soblen, who is now in Brixton Prison in London, recovering from a suicide attempt on the plane on which he was expelled from Israel early this month, made the request through his Israeli attorney, Aryeh Ankorion. In a letter to Interior Minister Moshe Shapiro, the attorney asked that Dr.Soblen, who jumped $100,000 bail in New York and fled to Israel to avoid serving a life sentence for espionage for Russia, be permitted to return to Israel, and that a decision about his remaining be taken after that.
While Dr. Soblen’s chances for an entry visa were considered nil, the request did appear to open the way for Mr. Ankorion to seek an Israeli Supreme Court hearing in the matter. The Interior Ministry spokesman also said that Mr. Shapiro was consulting other members of the Government on the request.
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