Vanunu: I just wanted to let world know

Ma'ariv English website
Shaul Adar, Britain
May 31, 2004

In first interview after release, nuclear spy says he was disappointed after being accused of treason.

In his first interview since being released from Prison, nuclear whistleblower Mordechai Vanunu said he was disappointed and upset over being accused of committing treason. "I felt they just wanted to get their revenge on me", said Vanunu during the interview with the BBC, adding that he wanted to save the State of Israel from another holocaust.

Vanunu also noted that he didn't feel his actions were treason, but rather a report, claiming he wanted to inform the world about what Israel was secretly doing. "I didn't come and say that Israel or Dimona [site of nuclear reactor] should be destroyed, I just told the world: 'look at what they're doing and judge for yourself'", added Vanunu.

In the interview, Vanunu also described his meeting with "Cindy", the Mossad agent who enticed him to go to Rome, where he was abducted by Israel in 1986. Vanunu said Cindy was warm and friendly and used to kiss him "all the time".

Regarding his abduction, Vanunu related how he was jumped by two people once he entered the house in Rome. Subsequently, a woman injected him with an unknown substance, while Cindy disappeared. Vanunu said he became unconscious and later woke up on a large bed, before being taken out of the house and into a waiting car.

One of the most well-known photographs in Israel's history is the picture of Vanunu displaying details of his abduction by pressing his palm against the window of a police van. In the interview, Vanunu says that initially he also wrote down the nuclear materials Israel possessed, but subsequently erased it.

Talking about his time in detention, Vanunu said that the Israel Security Agency and the Mossad used psychological means and sophisticated brainwashing techniques to break his spirit. Vanunu says security authorities tried to harm him by using certain foods, claiming that he was given bread, eggs, cheeses and chocolate in the hopes that he suffer a heart-attack or other diseases.

In conclusion, Vanunu declared that he does not regret his actions, despite the severe punishment imposed on him. The nuclear spy stressed that he does not want to live in Israel any longer and is interested in starting a new life in the US or in Europe.