<http://www.imdb.com/news/sb/2004-06-04>
The Israeli foreign ministry has accused the BBC of paying nuclear whistleblower Mordechai Vanunu for an interview, thereby breaking the terms of his release. The interview, which was broadcast Sunday night, charged that the BBC interview "was planned and conducted in a clandestine manner, with the express intent of bypassing the law." Vanunu had served 18 years in prison after being found guilty of leaking Israel's nuclear secrets to the London Sunday Times . He is barred from speaking to foreign journalists. The BBC observed that the interview was conducted by Yael Lotan, an Israeli, and that Vanunu was not paid by the BBC for it. It added: "The BBC was fulfilling its duty to report world events fairly and impartially. Mr Vanunu's story is of legitimate world interest and it would have been remiss of the BBC not to cover it."