The Jewish press is awash with speculation that Jonathan Pollard, the American who is serving a life sentence for spying for Israel, will be released from prison in November.

Israel has been increasing pressure on the US to free Pollard in recent years, and his detention has become a popular cause among the Israeli public.

Now, the US Department of Justice is "seriously" considering his release, according to a report in the Algemeiner, an American Jewish publication, which quoted a Department source.

A US court found Pollard guilty of passing military secrets to Israel in the 1980s while working as an intelligence analyst for the US Navy. America has been silent on whether Pollard will be freed on his parole date, believed to be November 21. Some Israeli experts think that Pollard's release could be used as a sweetener to help Israel swallow the recent deal with Iran.

Jonathan Rynhold, a Bar Ilan University academic and expert in Israel-US relations, said that Pollard's freedom was "the kind of thing they [the US] throw in" when wanting to calm or reward Israel. He added: "It's definitely seen as a card."