Nur Masalha claims that several of the suspects were "pampered" during their trial. Politicians from the Likud, Morasha, and Tehiya parties visited the suspects in prison to express solidarity. An "impressive group of prominent rabbis" formed a group to lobby on their behalf. Yigal Cohen-Orgad and Rehavam Ze'evi offered references testifying to the good character of the accused, while other MKs like Meir Cohen-Avidov and Dov Shilansky were supportive from the very outset. Yuval Ne'eman argued that they had acted purely out of self-defense. A bill to grant them an amnesty was presented to the Knesset by religious parties. In a public opinion poll conducted by Haaretz in mid-1985, according to Nur Masalha's reading, 52.6% of Israelis polled were in favour of the prisoners' immediate release without trial. Edward Alexander, however, reports that a Haaretz poll in June found that 60% of Israelis condemned the Underground's activities, and the culprits deserved severe punishment. 14% of interviewees are said to have approved of the group, while 17.5% said some specific acts were justified. According to Israel Shahak, Rabbi Aharon Lichtenstein stated that the case was different from a Jew murdering other Jews: In this case, non-Jews, who have a different soul from Jewish people, had been murdered, and though some punishment was necessary, it should reflect this distinction.