« zurück zur Hauptseite
Autor: "G.Lange" (2003-06-29 22:09:55)
Atomwaffen-Bericht
Israel wirft BBC Antisemitismus vor
Der britische Sender BBC wird seitens der israelischen Regierung
des Antisemitismus bezichtigt. Anlass für die Vorwürfe ist ein
Bericht, wonach Israel über ein stattliches Atomwaffenarsenal ver-
fügen soll und über biologische und chemische Kampfstoffe.
Außerdem
habe die Armee ein unbekanntes Gas gegen Palästinenser eingesetzt.
Jerusalem - Eine von der BBC produzierten Sendung aus der Serie
"Correspondent" war am Samstag in Israel zu empfangen. Darin werden
etliche Experten mit der übereinstimmenden Aussage zitiert, Israel
verfüge über des weltweit sechstgrößte Atomwaffenarsenal
von tak-
tischen Bomben bis zu Mittelstreckenraketen. Auch sollen die Streit-
kräfte über biologische und chemische Kampfstoffe verfügen -
und
teilweise eingesetzt haben. So sei vor zwei Jahren ein unbekanntes
Gas gegen Palästinenser in Gaza zum Einsatz gekommen.
Die Sendung hat in der israelischen Regierung Empörung ausgelöst.
Ein Regierungsmitarbeiter warf der BBC wegen des Berichts über die
geheimen Atomwaffen antisemitische Hetze im Stil der Nazi-Zeitung
"Der Stürmer" vor. Daniel Seaman, Leiter des israelischen
Presse-
amtes, sieht in dem Bericht "Israels geheime Waffen" einen weiteren
Beitrag in einer Reihe von Sendungen, in denen die britische Rund-
funkanstalt das Existenzrecht Israels in Frage stelle.
Seaman sagte, die neuen Vorwürfe erinnerten an den schrecklichsten
Antisemitismus. Nach einem Bericht der Zeitung "Jerusalem Post"
erwägt das israelische Presseamt nun Arbeitseinschränkungen
für die
BBC-Mitarbeiter. BBC-Sprecherin Kate Atkins verteidigte indes den
Beitrag: "Wir stehen zu dem Programm und würden jede Reaktion der
israelischen Regierung bedauern."
Die Regierung in Jerusalem hatte den Besitz von Atomwaffen stets
dementiert. Dennoch gilt als äußerst wahrscheinlich, dass Israel
Atomwaffen besitzt. Offiziell hieß es bislang lediglich, Israel
sei nicht das erste Land, das Atomwaffen in den Nahen Osten ein-
führt. Die Regierung verweigerte bisher die Unterzeichnung des
Atomwaffensperrvertrages zur Unterbindung der Verbreitung von
Nuklearwaffen, weil sie internationale Inspektionen ablehnt.
SPIEGEL ONLINE - 29. Juni 2003, 18:44
URL: http://www.spiegel.de/politik/ausland/0,1518,255172,00.html
* * *
Sunday, 16 March, 2003, 01:47 GMT
Israeli nuclear power exposed
Israel has enforced Vanunus silence for 16 years
By Olenka Frenkiel
Reporting from Israel for Correspondent
Mordechai Vanunu, Israels nuclear whistleblower, was jailed in
1986 for publishing photographs of Israels nuclear bomb factory
at Dimona. Olenka Frenkiel reveals the extent of Israels nuclear
gagging.
Vanunu has spent 17 years in jail, 11 of which were in a minute
solitary confinement cell - and he has just had his appeal for
parole denied.
He will stay in jail until 2004, when his term is expected to end.
Sunday Times journalist Peter Hounam heard rumours in 1986 that an
Israeli whistleblower was offering proof of what the world had long
suspected.
Vanunu was that whistleblower.
His revelations confirmed that Israel was building advanced nuclear
weapons.
After the Sunday Times published this scoop, Vanunu was lured to
Italy and kidnapped by Mossad agents and illegally smuggled back
to Israel.
He was tried in secret and convicted of treason and spying.
Security chief exposed
In court, at his parole hearing, Avigdor Feldman, Vanunus lawyer,
argued that his client had no more secrets and should be freed.
But the prosecutor had a new argument: the imminent war with Iraq.
After the hearing Mr Feldman told Correspondent: "The prosecutor
said that if Vanunu were released, the Americans would probably
leave Iraq and go after Israel and Israels nuclear weapons - which
I found extremely ridiculous."
The real force blocking Vanunus release is a man who was known only
as "Y".
In 2001, "Y" was exposed as Yehiyel Horev and it is said that the
only thing he fears is publicity.
Mr Horev is the head of Israels most powerful intelligence service,
dealing with nuclear and military secrets.
His accountability has only been to the many prime ministers he has
watched come and go in the 16 years he has built his power base.
He has been likened to the head of the FBI, J Edgar Hoover - an
autocrat out of control.
Ronen Bergman, security correspondent for one of Israels leading
newspapers - Yediot Ahronoth - says: "Horev is a grave danger to
Israeli democracy.
"He operates with no law, no real scrutiny and no monitoring by the
Israeli parliament.
"Horev was afraid that veterans of the Israeli intelligence and
the Israeli nuclear effort would try to maintain their footprint
in the history of Israel and tell their story.
"He wanted to frighten them."
Acting with impunity
Israel never confirms or denies claims that it has nuclear, chemical
and biological weapons.
The country positions itself outside international treaties, which
would make it subject to inspection.
For 40 years, most Israelis have been content with this policy -
known as "nuclear ambiguity".
But there are some in Israel who argue this policy has had its day.
They say the costs of such secrecy to Israeli democracy are too great.
Uzi Even, was a young scientist working, in the 60s, at Dimona -
Israels nuclear reactor - as did Vanunu.
Today, Mr Even says it should be shut down.
Forty-year-old reactors tend to have accidents and he believes that
Dimona, which is beyond the reach of the Israeli parliament, needs
to be brought into a system of accountability and public scrutiny.
Mr Even explained: "You should have an outside watchdog.
"The secrecy more or less created an extra- territorial area in
Israel where standard procedures of safety monitoring are not
implemented.
"So worker safety, environmental questions and industrial safety
procedures, are not covered, and there are thousands of people
working there."
Enforced silence
Nothing illustrates this better than the sensitive issue of Dimonas
cancer victims.
In an Israeli documentary in 2002, Dimona workers said accidents had
been routine.
They spoke of explosions, fires and liquid and toxic gas leaks that
they had to clean, often without protection.
The authorities denied they had worked with radioactive materials.
They have refused to compensate them or their families for their
years of loyal service.
Because of the strict secrecy rules they were even unable to fight
for their rights.
When Correspondent approached one of the workers, who was dying of
cancer, he refused to be interviewed - but with some regret.
Unaware he was being filmed, he said: "I wanted to talk to you but
I have been silenced.
"They came from intelligence and told me not to talk.
"They said I would be like Vanunu."
Vanunu has another year in jail.
When his sentence is finished he hopes to emigrate to America.
But Mr Horev has clearly let it be known he never intends to let
Vanunu leave Israel.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
Mordechai Vanunu has been nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize for 2003.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
---------------------------------------------------------------------
It was unfortunately necessary to postpone the billed programme
"Israels Secret Weapon" on Sunday night due entirely to the
overrun of an unscheduled news bulletin about the Azores summit.
It is sometimes necessary to make last minute scheduling changes,
and with events around the Iraq conflict so fluid at present,
this is particularly the case.
The programme was transmitted at the first available opportunity
and the BBC trailed and promoted the new schedule to direct
audiences to the programme from Sunday night and through Monday.
There is no suggestion that any political pressure affected a
scheduling decision by the BBC.
---------------------------------------------------------------------
Israels Secret Weapon was broadcast on BBC Two on Monday, 17 March,
2003 at 2320 GMT.
http://www.palaestina-stimme.de/index.html http://www.pchrgaza.org/
http://www.arabmail.de/deutsch.html http://www.palaestinaonline.de/
http://www.alaqsaintifada.org/ http://www.palestinemonitor.org/
http://mitglied.lycos.de/palestine2000/pages/start.php
http://www.electronicintifada.net/new.html http://www.palis-tine.com/
http://www.freunde-palaestinas.de/ http://www.lawsociety.org/
http://www.ipc-ps.info/ http://www.friedenjetzt.ch/
http://mitglied.lycos.de/alburaq/index.php http://www.addameer.org/
>>>-----------------------------------------------------------------<<<
>> Further Informations about Iraq and Palestine:
>> GIV-Archiv: http://www.giv-archiv.de http://www.giv-seiten.de.tt
>> http://home.arcor.de/ge.lange/index.html http://giv-seiten.de
>> http://home.arcor.de/ge.lange/Menue/www.giv.de.cx/index.html
>> http://home.arcor.de/ge.lange/Menue/www.irak.de.cx/index.html
>> http://home.arcor.de/ge.lange/Menue/www.giv-archiv.de/index.html
>> http://soziales.freepage.de/irak/index.htm
>>>-----------------------------------------------------------------<<<
* * * * *