Old nun on trial for US nuclear breach

An 83-year-old nun and two peace activists have been put on trial for breaching an enriched uranium complex in the United States, while protesting against nuclear weapons.

Sister Melissa Kirby, Michael Walli, and Greg Boertje-Obed have been charged with sabotage and destruction of federal property after they broke into the Y-12 National Security Complex in Oak Ridge, Tennessee last July, a federal official told court proceedings on Tuesday.

Authorities said the trio cut perimeter fences and walked through the complex for hours, spray-painting slogans and hammering on walls before they were finally caught.

The activists were protesting against “the criminality of this 70-year industry” including the making and refurbishing of “nuclear weapons at Y-12 [which] is both illegal under US and international law, and it is also immoral. Ultimately, we are required to follow the law of love and our consciences.”

“We spend more on nuclear arms than on the departments of education, health, transportation, disaster relief and a number of other government agencies that I can’t remember,” said the nun.

The incident exposed a major embarrassment for the US government, as they had to shut down operations for over two weeks at the nuclear sector’s equivalent of Fort Knox.

“It hurt our credibility and that credibility is tied to nuclear deterrence…It was an embarrassment for the Y-12 plant and the people who work there. It was an embarrassment for the NNSA (National Nuclear Security Agency) and the DOE (Department of Energy),” said Steven Erhart, manager of the nuclear site.

The Oak Ridge facility is the main site where enriched uranium is processed and stored during the production of nuclear weapons.

According to the United Nations, the US — which is the only country that has ever used nuclear weapons against human beings — has conducted over 1,000 nuclear tests since 1945.

GMA/KA