ATHENS, 24 September 2004 — Freed nuclear whistleblower Mordechai Vanunu said yesterday he was still not safe in Israel and wanted to leave the country after serving 18 years in jail for leaking Israel’s atomic secrets.
Vanunu spent 18 years in jail after Israeli agents abducted him and convicted him of treason for revealing nuclear secrets to a British newspaper.
He was freed in April but an Israeli court imposed a one-year travel ban on him.
“I don’t feel free or safe in Israel,” Vanunu said in an interview with Greek Flash radio. “I want to leave Israel as soon as possible,” he said through a Greek translator.
Vanunu said the United States was turning a blind eye to Israel’s nuclear program, but also urged Iran to quit what he said was its quest for nuclear weapons.
“The United States pushes Iran on its nuclear program, but it should do the same with Israel too. You cannot focus on Iran and forget Israel,” he said.
