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Israeli authorities prevent Mordechai Vanunu from traveling to Britain

June 2, 2014 at 10:09 am

Israel’s Interior Minister Gideon Sa’ar and the legal adviser to the Israeli Government Yehuda Weinstein have barred the country’s nuclear whistle blower, Mordechai Vanunu, from travelling to Britain for three days.

According to media reports on Monday, Vanunu received an invitation from Amnesty International to participate in a conference to be held in London on June 17-19, on the protection of those who disclose information that would serve the interests of the public, or information revealing violations of human rights.

Vanunu has also been invited to speak in front of members of the British Parliament on the 10th anniversary of his release from an Israeli jail.

Vanunu lodged a complaint with the Israeli Supreme Court through his lawyer Avigdor Feldman, demanding a reversal of the travel ban, Haaretz newspaper reported.

Since his release in 2004 after spending 18 years in prison, Vanunu has been banned from leaving Israel, and authorities have imposed restrictions on his movement. He is also not allowed to speak with foreigners without a government permit.

The Israeli Supreme Court decided in December that Vanunu still possessed confidential information and did not back down from his intention to publish them.

Meanwhile, Vanunu’s lawyer said in his petition to the court that his client no longer poses threats to the security of Israel since the information he had 20 years ago are now outdated, and that Israeli nuclear power now is much more advanced.

He called on the court to lift restrictions on Vanunu, which amount to further punishments on the defendant despite his acquittal.

The Israeli Public Prosecution said it would respond to Vanunu’s petition on June 10.