Vanunu Indicted

Oh, and for the record, Blogger is once again a synonym for "acts like shit." IF this manages to show up, it will have taken an hour and a half to post. Apparently, I'm not the only one with the problem. But sorry for the slow updates nonetheless.

Mordechai Vanunu was indicted today for "violating the terms of his parole." In plain language, this means he spoke freely:

Under the terms of his release, the former technician at the Israeli nuclear facility in the Negev desert town of Dimona was barred from leaving Israeli territory and contacting foreigners. The restrictions were in force for a year and their extension was expected to come up for consideration in coming weeks.

Mr. Vanunu has tested the limits of his release on numerous occasions by granting interviews to foreign news media. He also was stopped by Israeli police on Christmas Eve while attempting to attend Midnight Mass in the West Bank town of Bethlehem, outside his permitted area of travel.

Well, if the Israeli government's treatment of Palestinians living in the occupied West Bank and occupied Gaza don't demonstrate beyond all doubt that their views of "democracy," "free speech," and "human rights" aren't exactly universal, then this should. Vanunu opened the door on the dirty laundry that is the Israeli nuclear program--by far and away the worst WMD's in the region. This open secret, and their powerful military make a mockery of the Israeli government's lame attempts to plead the victim's case. And the muzzling of Vanunu--who really just wants to get the hell out of the country (also denied under the terms of his parole)--is more than just a black eye. It's an example of how ugly the Israeli government really is.