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Iran’s Supreme Leader Khamenei has threatened revenge after the assassination of a senior nuclear scientist. He and President Rouhani blame the United States and Israel for the attack.
After the attack on a senior Iranian nuclear scientist, the leadership in Tehran has promised retaliation. The country’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, called for “decisive punishment” for the perpetrators and those behind them.
In the morning, President Hassan Rouhani also spoke at a cabinet meeting. “Global arrogance” – with Israel “as a mercenary” – is responsible for the death of nuclear physicist Mohsen Fachrisadeh. Global arrogance refers to the United States.
The attack shows the desperation of Iran’s enemies and the depth of their hatred. “Once again, imperialism and its Zionist mercenaries caused bloodshed and the death of an Iranian scientist,” Rouhani said on state television. This “terrorist attack” only demonstrates the fear of Tehran’s enemies about the technological progress of the Islamic Republic. However, the assassination will not prevent the country from following Fachrisadeh’s path even more consistently, the president said. “His martyrdom will not stop our successes.”
The nuclear program will continue
According to the Iranian nuclear chief, the attack will not stop or impair the progress of the country’s nuclear program. “The path of Fachrisadeh will now continue even more intensely,” said Ali-Akbar Salehi. Communications Minister Mohamed Jawad Asari Jahromi made a similar statement. “Thousands will grow back from the only flower that is plucked,” the minister tweeted.
Shot in the car, died in the hospital
According to Iranian state media, nuclear scientist Fachrisadeh died on Friday after an attack near the capital, Tehran. According to Defense Minister Amir Hatami, Fachrisadeh and his bodyguards were heading from the small town of Absard to Tehran. “His car was shot first, and after about 10 to 15 seconds, a Nissan with explosives exploded about 15 to 20 meters from his car,” Hatami said of the sequence of events. Television channels showed images of a dark limousine with a smashed windshield, debris and blood on the street.
Fachrisadeh is considered the father of the Iranian nuclear program, which was officially suspended in the early 2000s. The United States and Israel assume that Iran will try to continue the program. More recently, Fachrisadeh headed the Department of Research and Technological Renewal of the Ministry of Defense. In a tweet, Khamenei describes him as one of the country’s top defense and nuclear scientists.
Suspicion against Israel
So far, no one has heard of the attack on the scientist. The Iranian secret service and the Revolutionary Guard (IRGC) launched the investigation.
Iranian suspicions against Israel are fueled by a statement by Israeli President Benjamin Netanyahu. In 2018 he spoke extensively about Fachrisadeh’s role on television and warned: “Remember the name Mohsen Fachrisadeh.”
According to a New York Times report, a US official and two other intelligence officials apparently confirmed that Israel was behind the attack. They did not give more details.
Assassination could jeopardize nuclear program talks
The scientist’s death could exacerbate the conflict between Iran and its opponents in the final weeks of US President Donald Trump’s term. At the same time, the incident of Trump’s designated successor, Joe Biden, is likely to complicate efforts to revive detente from the time of US President Barack Obama.
Alireza Yavari of the University of Tehran said on Al Jazeera: “Some countries in the region may urge Iran to a military confrontation. This could exacerbate tensions and prevent Iran and the United States from finding common ground. Iran’s response depends on who is behind the murder. If it turns out that it was a foreign secret service, that will complicate the situation. I don’t think that an adequate military response is out of the question. “
Appeal of the German Foreign Minister
UN Secretary General António Guterres urged restraint in relation to the attack. A UN spokesperson for the dpa news agency announced that the reports of the incident had been taken note. “We ask for restraint and consider it necessary to avoid measures that could lead to an escalation of tensions in the region.”
In the newspapers of the Funke media group, German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas called on everyone involved to remain calm. The Federal Republic of Germany did not yet have any own knowledge of the incident, but it was clear that “the assassination of Mohsen Fachrisadeh will again make the situation worse in the region, at a time when we simply do not need such an escalation at all.”
With information from Karin Senz, ARD-Studio Istanbul
