Israeli nuclear spy Mordechai Vanunu, who was recently released from prison on condition that he doesn't talk to media, said in an interview published yesterday that Israel has as many as 200 atomic bombs.
"Israel has between 100 and 200 atom bombs, including neutron bombs and hydrogen bombs which are 10 times more powerful than regular atom bombs," Vanunu told British-based Al-Wasat.
"If an atomic bomb can kill 100 thousand people then the hydrogen bomb can hurt a million ... I will call for an international convention in Cairo, including Israel, for dismantling nuclear weapons", Venunu said.
Israel has maintained a policy of nuclear ambiguity, and has not publicly disclosed the number of bombs it has assembled over the years.
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Vanunu, who served an 18-year sentence for exposing Israel's nuclear program at Dimona to Britain's Sunday Times, said in the interview that he will fight "until my dying day" for a permit to leave Israel and seek political asylum abroad. Israel has barred him from leaving the country, talking to the media or meeting with foreigners, calling him a threat to national security.
Last week, Vanunu told another Arab newspaper that Israel was behind the 1963 assassination of U.S. President John F. Kennedy, prompting some Israeli officials to hope aloud the far-fetched comments will hurt the spy's credibility.
He told the al-Hayat newspaper that according to "near-certain indications," Kennedy was assassinated due to "pressure he exerted on then head of government, David Ben-Gurion, to shed light on Dimona's nuclear reactor."
Vanunu, who would not be in a position to know the current security apparatus of Israel's nuclear plant, also claimed the Middle East is at risk of a "second Chernobyl" in the event of an accident at the Dimona plant. He said an earthquake could cause fissures to the core that would create a massive radiation leak "threatening millions."
"Vanunu is walking a fine line," a security source told WorldNetDaily. "The Shin Beth is looking very carefully into his comments, which completely violate the conditions of his release from prison. It is possible we're going to re-arrest this maniac very soon."
Vanunu also used yesterday's interview to put out somewhat of a personal ad. He said he wants to live abroad, become an academic, and marry a "Christian woman, of European background, 35 years old, pretty and smart, who is also politically active and wants children."