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Nuclear whistleblower Mordechai Vanunu exiting a Jerusalem courthouse after being convicted of violating a military order. (Tomer Appelbaum / BauBau)
Last update - 00:00 30/04/2007
Vanunu convicted of violating order barring foreign contacts
By Nir Hasson, Haaretz Correspondent , and Agencies

Israel's nuclear whistleblower Mordechai Vanunu was convicted Monday by the Jerusalem Magistrates Court of violating a military order prohibiting him from talking to foreign nationals. He was also convicted of attempting to leave Jerusalem in the direction of Bethlehem.

The court accepted most of the indictment's clauses, save those relating to Vanunu's Internet correspondence with foreign nationals, the evidence for which was rejected by the court as inadmissible.

It appears that most of Vanunu's conversations with foreign citizens were phone conversations, and that that foreigners that he met with were all members of the media.
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The court ruled that military injunction on Vanunu was necessary because the defendant "holds within his memory" secret information, the publication of which could jeopardize Israel's security interests.

Vanunu said following his conviction that Israel is still under the British Mandate, and that the law the he was convicted of violating is a Mandate law.

"Perhaps I should turn to the Queen or Tony Blair for justice," he said, adding that the verdict is proof that Israel has nuclear arms.

Attorney Michael Strauss, who represented Vanunu along with attorney Avigdor Feldman, said that "this verdict convicts a person for being in contact with other people - regardless of the content of their conversation - simply for the contact, and this is an intolerable situation in a liberal democracy. This has never happened in the past."

Attorney Dan Eldad of the state prosecution said that the order was approved by nine Supreme Court judges on three separate occasions. "In the situation that arose there was no way to avoid the injunction, and our objective was to clarify that it must be upheld."

Thw sentencing hearing will begin in two weeks. According to estimates, Vanunu will receive a suspended prison sentence.

The sentence could hurt Vanunu's struggle to leave Israel in the face of a travel ban that the government, citing security concerns, has renewed annually.

Vanunu was sentenced to 18 years behind bars in 1986 after giving an unauthorised interview to a British newspaper about his work at Israel's Dimona reactor. The disclosures all but blew away the secrecy around an assumed Israeli atomic arsenal.

Since his release Vanunu has campaigned for Israel to be disarmed while denying Israeli officials' charges that he has more secrets that he could divulge if allowed to emigrate.

"All that I want is to be free, to leave the country," Vanunu, 52, told reporters at the Jerusalem court.

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  1.   Vanunu is a traitor so send him back to jail!!! 11:35  |  arthur 30/04/07
  2.   Adding to Mordechai Vanunu`s news value 11:36  |  JW 30/04/07
  3.   This is Bogus 12:43  |  Jeff 30/04/07
  4.   What a liberal and Democratic state 12:48  |  Keith 30/04/07
  5.   Send him back anither 18 years... 12:49  |  Ice 30/04/07
  6.   In this day and age 12:50  |  sh 30/04/07
  7.   great democracy 12:56  |  answer 30/04/07
  8.   Vanunu 12:59  |  Scott 30/04/07
  9.   vannunu served his sentence 13:03  |  avi 30/04/07
  10.   #1, ARTHUR, we are not stupid 13:06  |  VIPER 30/04/07
  11.   Injustice of the court 13:06  |  Dani Reiss 30/04/07
  12.   As a law breaker, Vanunu must bear the consequences!!! 13:19  |  Anat 30/04/07
  13.   What Secrets? 13:27  |  Simon Gordon 30/04/07
  14.   Nu Nu Vanunu! 13:41  |  asa 30/04/07
  15.   So much for justice in Israel 13:43  |  Clickfool 30/04/07
  16.   Ahhh...the land of the free 13:59  |  Tim 30/04/07
  17.   Finally! Stick Vanunu back in jail! 14:20  |  Gili 30/04/07
  18.   Condemning Israeli Justice? 14:22  |  Myself 30/04/07
  19.   enough 14:24  |  peter 30/04/07
  20.   In fight agaisnt WMD`s people such as Vanunu should be protected 14:26  |  Jens 30/04/07
  21.   Youre probably right 14:27  |  mat 30/04/07
  22.   Even the Israelis here believe in this Democracy!!!!!Unbelievable 14:30  |  Gaby 30/04/07
  23.   stupid country 14:35  |  Darrell 30/04/07
  24.   Shame on Israel 15:02  |  Howard Morland 30/04/07
  25.   Tim & Keith - Please think about your logic 15:06  |  SA 30/04/07
  26.   # 12 15:14  |  citizen of earth 30/04/07
  27.   He is old news 15:21  |  William 30/04/07
  28.   Other countries eg USA have executed convicted nuclear spies 15:27  |  Briton 30/04/07
  29.   israeli fascism 15:36  |  mehmet 30/04/07
  30.   Vanunu/Pollard 15:36  |  Eve 30/04/07
  31.   Traitor, to martyr, to pin up boy.Does Israel really need this? 15:37  |  PETER SM 30/04/07
  32.   What if Iran did this/ And what about J. Pollard 15:39  |  Lubnani Yehudi 30/04/07
  33.   Shame on the Israeli State 16:06  |  Josh Goldman 30/04/07
  34.   Reply to #31 16:30  |  Eve 30/04/07
  35.   Vanuunu is Christian like the USA! 17:09  |  Mario 30/04/07
  36.   TO Jeff - This is Bogus 17:31  |  Steve Beikirch 30/04/07
  37.   TO PETER SM 17:37  |  Steve Beikirch 30/04/07
  38.   Eve and others lacking basic information 17:59  |  Josh Goldman 30/04/07
  39.   What is truth? 18:18  |  Douglas Evans 30/04/07
  40.   Maybe Nathan Sharanski could launch a protest 18:21  |  Jozef 30/04/07
  41.   let him free 18:30  |  Omar 30/04/07
  42.   #1 is right--I believe in Death Penalty 18:39  |  Martin 30/04/07
  43.   Arthur - there are laws and laws 18:55  |  Josh Goldman 30/04/07
  44.   Eve (30) seems to offer a solution to a problem: 19:06  |  Jozef 30/04/07
  45.   Clickfool 15. 19:51  |  David Nigel Braham 30/04/07
  46.   Vanunu is a hero 19:57  |  Man 30/04/07
  47.   #3 Bogus laws? 20:03  |  Kate 30/04/07
  48.   # 42 Martin 21:38  |  Axel 30/04/07
  49.   # 1 arthur 21:44  |  Axel 30/04/07
  50.   # 47 Kate 22:29  |  Axel 30/04/07
  51.   vanunu and incarceration 01:29  |  Jose Amram 01/05/07
  52.   vanunu and incarceration 01:29  |  Jose Amram 01/05/07
  53.   vanunu is a hero 17:05  |  keith 01/04/09
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