World Notes ESPIONAGE

As far as Israeli officials are concerned, Mordechai Vanunu has done too much talking. The former nuclear technician made global headlines last October when he allegedly told the London Sunday Times that Israel had built and stockpiled 100 nuclear weapons. Then, while in Israeli custody last December, two months after he vanished from London, Vanunu flashed a message written on his hand through a police-van window saying he had been abducted in Rome, presumably by Israeli agents.

When Vanunu's trial for treason and espionage began last week, officials tried to shut him up. He arrived at court each day in a van with blacked-out windows and wore a visored motorcycle helmet as he was hustled into a boarded- up courtroom. When he shook off the headgear despite handcuffs, sirens drowned out his shouting. Straps were then added to the helmet to keep it in place. Vanunu will probably not suffer this indignity for long. He is expected to be convicted soon and sentenced to life in prison.