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Iranian Officials Say Assassination of Fakhrizadeh Was an Act of State Terrorism, by Enemies of Diplomacy

December 3, 2020

 

Mohsen Fakhrizadeh	General Amir Hatami said Iran would continue the path of the "martyr doctor" November 2020

 

Enemy's Act of Terror, Crime Not to be Left Unanswered, Says Iranian Ambassador to China, Mohammad Keshavarzzadeh

Tehran, Dec 3, IRNA –

Iran’s ambassador to China Mohammad Keshavarzzadeh said on Thursday that Iran will certainly exercise its legitimate right to identify the main perpetrators and agents behind the assassination of Iranian scientist Mohsen Fakhrizadeh and punish them in accordance with the international law.

Mohsen Fakhrizadeh, Deputy Minister of Defense and Head of the Research and Innovation Organization of the Ministry of Defense of Iran, who was described by Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei as "a distinguished nuclear and defense scientist", was assassinated and attained martyrdom on Friday evening, December 27, near the town of Absard, Damavand city to the east of Tehran during a terrorist attack by the criminal agents of the Zionist regime.

Speaking to China’s Global Times in an exclusive interview, Keshavarzzadeh admitted that nuclear development in Iran will not end after the attack, and added, "We will continue activities to ensure the peaceful nuclear rights of the Iranian people."

He went on to say that “the terrorist act" took place at a time when Fakhrizadeh was playing a "prominent role" in the production of the first indigenous diagnosis kits and coronavirus vaccine for the Iranian citizens. "His great contribution to our national efforts in curbing the COVID-19 pandemic was conducted at a time when Iran is under inhumane sanctions of the United States, strictly preventing our access to humanitarian goods, including medicines and medical equipment," he said. 

He also said that the assassination of Iranian nuclear scientist Fakhrizadeh was committed by "perpetrators [who] have a long list of assassinations in the sensitive region of West Asia and beyond."

He said that Fakhrizadeh's assassination shows that the enemies of diplomacy are living in anxious days and intend to endanger world peace and security by disturbing the region.

Regarding the future of Tehran-Washington talks he said, "As far as the US is not a member of the JCPOA [Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action], we won't negotiate with them."

He urged the next administration of the US to explicitly condemn Trump's policies against Iran and make up to its anti-human rights and terrorist acts and the wrong policies pursued by the current government over the past four years in its first steps.

Kehavazzadeh added, "Iran and the US can both decide and announce that they will return to the state before January 20, 2017, [when Donald Trump took office], and this can be a great solution to many issues and problems, and completely change the course and conditions, and then we can continue taking the next steps on different issues.”

"Iran has always adhered to its obligations if all other parties have done so in a responsible manner, and we consider constructive interaction with the world as our strategy."

Enemy’s act of terror, crime not to be left unanswered: Envoy - IRNA English

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Assassination of Iranian Scientist Fakhrizadeh Is a Clear Manifestation of State Terrorism, Says Iranian Envoy to the UN,  Mohammad Reza Sahraei

Tehran, Dec 3, IRNA –

Counselor at the Permanent Mission of the Islamic Republic of Iran to the United Nations on Palestine Mohammad Reza Sahraei said that the assassination of Iranian scientist Mohsen Fakhrizadeh is a criminal act and a clear manifestation of state terrorism aimed at jeopardizing international and regional peace, and needs to be strongly and immediately condemned by the international community.

Mohsen Fakhrizadeh, Deputy Minister of Defense and Head of the Research and Innovation Organization of the Ministry of Defense of Iran, who was described by Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei as "a distinguished nuclear and defense scientist", was assassinated and attained martyrdom on Friday evening, December 27, near the town of Absard, Damavand city to east of Tehran during a terrorist attack by the criminal agents of the Zionist regime.

Sahraei’s delivered the speech at the UN meeting on Palestine where five resolutions were adopted against the Zionist regime on Wednesday evening.

The full text of his speech follows:

I would like to extend my deepest appreciation to the Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of Palestinian People for its prominent work in promoting the cause of Palestine. I would also like to extend my gratitude to the Secretariat’s Division for the Palestinian Rights for its valuable work as well. 

Yesterday, on the occasion of the International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People, all of us renewed our shared commitment to a just and lasting solution for the question of Palestine and durable peace in the Middle East. The observance of this day is indeed an opportunity to highlight the dire and painful situation endured by Palestinians over the course of decades as a result of the gross and systematic violation of their rights by the Israeli regime.

The question of Palestine is the longest-running crisis of our time with no foreseeable conclusion in sight. It has not been settled due to the application of the golden “principles of justice and international law”, as enshrined in Article 1 of the UN Charter, nor has it been ensured with respect to this crisis. In fact, the non-compliance of the occupying regime with relevant international laws and regulations has further prevented the international community from achieving a just and lasting solution to the crisis.

After more than seven decades, the Israeli regime has continued to violate the fundamental human rights and dignities of the Palestinian people as well as other Arabs living under its occupation. As a result, Palestinians are not only deprived of their lands and properties while being forcibly evicted but also subjected to violence, terror, and intimidation.

In the Gaza Strip, nearly two million Palestinians continue to live under the suffocating blockade, making Gaza the world’s largest uninhabitable open-air prison. This situation amounts to collective punishment against the entire population of Gaza, including women and children, thus constituting a war crime under international law.

We consider the Golan as an integral part of the territory of the Syrian Arab Republic. Iran reaffirms that all discriminatory and illegal policies by Israel constitute a flagrant violation of international law, the UN Charter, relevant UN resolutions, and the Fourth Geneva Convention.

  I would like to take this opportunity and reiterate our principled position that peace in the Middle East cannot be achieved solely through the promotion of a discriminatory and selective policy of support for the Israeli regime as well as simultaneously condemn the legitimate struggle of Palestinian people against the occupation. Putting an end to more than seven decades of conflict and instability in the Middle East while simultaneously establishing a durable peace is only possible by resolving the Palestinian issue through the termination of the occupation, the return of Palestinian refugees to their homeland, ensuring the inalienable right of the Palestinian people to self-determination as well as establishing a sovereign and viable State of Palestine with Al-Quds as its capital.

Mr. President

Over the current decade, several top Iranian scientists have been targeted and assassinated in numerous violent terrorist attacks. Our firm evidence clearly indicates that certain foreign quarters were behind such assassinations. In this connection, on 27 November 2020 in the Absard city of the Tehran province, Dr. Mohsen Fakhrizadeh, a prominent Iranian scientist, was assassinated in a heinous terrorist attack. One of the last projects to be undertaken by Martyr Fakhrizadeh was his outstanding role in the development of the first indigenous COVID-19 test kit, which served as a great contribution to our national efforts in curbing the COVID-19 pandemic at a time when Iran is under such inhumane sanctions by the United States that thereby strictly prevent our access to humanitarian goods, including medicines and medical equipment. He was also supervising the development of a COVID-19 vaccine that could not only curb its spread but also help defend the population of our country that has been ravaged by this lethal pandemic. 

The cowardly assassination of Martyr Fakhrizadeh – with serious indications pointing to Israeli responsibility – is another desperate attempt to jeopardize international and regional peace. In fact, the commission of such a reckless and criminal act is a clear manifestation of state terrorism which needs to be strongly and immediately condemned by the international community.

Emphasizing that no amount of terrorist attacks can put pressure on or hinder Iran’s progress in the achievement of discoveries and successes in the fields of science and technology needed for its socio-economic development, the Islamic Republic of Iran reserves its rights to take all necessary measures to defend its people and secure its interests.

I thank you, Mr. President

Assassination of Iranian scientist “clear manifestation of state terrorism”: Envoy - IRNA English

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Fakhrizadeh Assassination Shows Desperation of Enemies of Diplomacy

By Ahmad Mohammadi

IRNA, December 3, 2020 

Assassination of Iranian scientist Mohsen Fakhrizadeh shows that the enemies of diplomacy are totally desperate and want to jeopardize the regional peace and stability through creating unrest in the region, Consul General of Islamic Republic of Iran in Pakistan’s Karachi said.

Ahmad Mohammadi in an article on Thursday said another reason behind the terrorist act is to halt Iran’s progress in the fight against coronavirus.

He said on Friday, 27 November 2020, and in continuation of the efforts by Iran’s enemies for assassinating the scientists of my country, a killing spree that had begun in 2010, Mohsen Fakhrizadeh, a deputy of the Ministry of Defense of the Islamic Republic of Iran and head of the Research and Innovation Organization of the ministry, was martyred in a terrorist attack near Tehran.

“Besides being a top nuclear scientist, martyr Fakhrizadeh played a leading role in scientific researches such as the production of coronavirus diagnostic kits and coronavirus vaccine. For his remarkable role in Iran’s scientific and technical progress, Iran’s foes were trying for the last 20 years to kill and physically eliminate him, but they had failed in that until the fateful day,” he said.

The diplomat added unfortunately this time, in an act of state terrorism, a usurper regime assassinated a government official of Iran along with his bodyguards, and killed and wounded a number of ordinary citizens.

“This cowardly and provocative act is irrefutably an open violation of international laws, the UN Charter, and the human rights,” Ahmad Mohammadi said.

He said from the information obtained so far, including from the advanced weapons collected from the place of attack, the hand of the Zionist regime in the killing of Fakhrizadeh is quite evident.

“On the other hand, according to the reports published by the US media, like the daily New York Times, this terrorist attack was indeed a joint operation by Israel and America. That is why the Islamic Republic of Iran considers this attack as a clear example of state terrorism whose responsibility lies legally on the shoulders of its planners and their allies,” said the envoy.

He said the state terrorism by the Zionist regime and some of its regional and extra-regional allies show that the enemies of diplomacy are totally desperate and want to jeopardize the regional peace and stability through creating unrest in the region.

“The Trump administration, the Zionist regime, and their allies, out of their frustration from failure in bringing Iran to its knees through their maximum pressure campaign and inhuman and unlawful sanctions, now want to weaken the diplomatic efforts for resolving the regional crises through resorting to brazen measures, like killing martyr Fakhrizadeh, when the Trump presidentship is coming to a close,” added Mohammadi.

He said the Islamic Republic of Iran has always shown that while it cautiously and patiently faces these kinds of conspiracies against its national interests and those against the security, peace, stability, and progress of the regional countries including its friend and brother country of Pakistan, reserves the right to respond to this crime and punish its perpetrators.

“It will give its response at a proper time, as it did decisively to the assassination of Shaheed Qasem Soleimani,” said the Iranian diplomat.

Consul General said ‘I want to draw the attention of my Pakistani brothers to two points. First, by virtue of various reports by the International Atomic Energy Agency, all Iranian nuclear programs are clearly peaceful in the eyes of this international body and all of its member countries.’

“Thus, such assassinations, that too by a regime that has the least atomic transparency, highlight the inherent nature of the regime: a complete disregard for the law. I hope that the countries who are on the path of normalization of ties with this expansionist regime, would understand that this regime is not bound to any international law or commitment and jubilation over the signing of an agreement with this regime would be a strategic mistake,” he said.

“Second, since the Islamic revolution in Iranians, over 17,000 Iranians have been killed in terrorist attacks. But, some European countries and the USA who claim to be an ardent supporter of human rights, have not only not condemned these attacks but have even become safe sleeping cells for terrorists and take pride in laying red carpets for them. The authorities in these countries attend the functions of these terrorist groups and also deliver their speeches there,” said the diplomat.

Ahmad Mohammadi in the article said the people of Iran expect a befitting and transparent response from all countries particularly ones who claim to be the defenders of human rights and the forerunners in the fight against terrorism.

“These kinds of countries should know that their double standards on terrorism will not help in solving this global crisis, but will result in its deepening across the world,” he noted.

“In the end, I feel it necessary to assure my Pakistani brothers that these kinds of cowardly acts will not only not be able to entrap Iran into the net of the war-mongering and hawkish regimes, but also cannot be able to cause any smallest of interruption in the advancement of science and technology in Iran,” he said.

Fakhrizadeh assassination shows desperation of enemies of diplomacy: Iranian diplomat - IRNA English

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Top Iranian Nuclear Scientist Killed In Attack

NPR, November 27, 202011:25 AM ET

MATTHEW S. SCHWARTZ

Fars News Agency via AP

A top Iranian scientist believed to be responsible for developing the country's military nuclear program was killed Friday (November 27, 2020), causing outrage in Iran and raising U.S. concerns over potential retaliation.

Mohsen Fakhrizadeh was in a vehicle that came under attack from "armed terrorists," Iran's Defense Ministry said in a statement. "In the shootout between Fakhrizadeh's bodyguards and the terrorists, the scientist was seriously wounded and taken to hospital," where the medical team was unable to save him, and he succumbed to his injuries, it said.

State media said the vehicle was traveling outside the capital, Tehran, when it came under attack.

No one immediately claimed responsibility for the attack, but some senior Iranian officials said they believe Israel played a role.

"Terrorists murdered an eminent Iranian scientist today," Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif said on Twitter. "This cowardice — with serious indications of Israeli role — shows desperate warmongering of perpetrators."

The Israeli government declined to comment on Fakhrizadeh's killing.

In April 2018, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu mentioned the scientist when discussing Iran's nuclear program.

"Remember that name, Fakhrizadeh," he said, while announcing that the Israeli spy agency Mossad had stolen documents from Iran about its covert nuclear activities.

In remarks Friday following news of the killing, Iranian Defense Minister Gen. Amir Hatami said Fakhrizadeh had a track record of scientific and defense innovations and led a team that developed one of the country's first kits for coronavirus diagnosis. Fakhrizadeh, a professor of physics at Imam Hussein University in Tehran, was the former head of Iran's Physics Research Center.

It's not the first time Fakhrizadeh faced an attempt on his life. Israeli intelligence affairs journalist Yossi Melman reported that the Iranian scientist escaped an attempted assassination a few years ago.

In addition to Fakhrizadeh's work as a physics professor, "he also led the clandestine Amad plan checking the feasibility of a nuclear bomb" and "led its weaponization efforts," Melman wrote in a tweet retweeted by President Trump. "He was head of Iran's secret military program and wanted for many years by Mossad."

The U.S. State and Treasury departments started sanctioning Fakhrizadeh in 2008, blocking him from interacting with the U.S. financial system. The U.S. has publicly said that Fakhrizadeh was the leader of Iran's nuclear research program.

The State Department and Pentagon declined to comment on the matter.

But a senior U.S. official speaking on condition of anonymity said the killing has raised concerns of blowback from Iran against U.S. forces in the region, especially in Iraq, where these forces already have faced attacks from Iranian-backed militias.

When Trump this month reportedly raised the possibility of attacking Iran to disable its nuclear program, U.S. military and other senior officials pushed back, warning of potential retaliation against U.S. troops in the region.

Still, Israel Defense Forces allegedly were instructed in recent weeks to prepare for the possibility that the U.S. would strike Iran before Trump leaves office, Axios reported Wednesday. This belief wasn't based on specific intelligence, but was due to the anticipation of a "very sensitive period" while Trump is still commander in chief, Axios said, citing senior Israeli officials.

Trita Parsi, founder of the National Iranian American Council, said in a series of tweets that Israel is a "prime suspect" in the attack because it has the expertise and motivation to do.

"Conducting attacks in Iran has few down-sides for Israel right now," said Parsi, who has written extensively on the relationship between Iran, Israel and the United States. "Either Iran lashes out and sparks a broader conflict that sucks in the US, bringing about a US-Iran confrontation that Netanyahu long has sought."

In a letter Friday to the U.N. secretary-general and the president of the Security Council, Iran's ambassador to the United Nations, Majid Takht Ravanchi, made clear he shares those suspicions.

"The cowardly assassination of Martyr Fakhrizadeh — with serious indications of Israeli responsibility in it — is another desperate attempt to wreak havoc on our region as well as to disrupt Iran's scientific and technological development," the ambassador said in the letter, noting that Iranian officials were "warning against any adventuristic measures by the United States and Israel."

"The Islamic Republic of Iran condemns, in the strongest possible terms, the criminal assassination of Martyr Fakhrizadeh," the letter added, "and expects the Secretary-General of the United Nations and the Security Council to strongly condemn this inhumane terrorist act and take necessary measures against its perpetrators."

The assassination is likely to complicate any Biden administration attempt to revive diplomacy with Iran, Parsi said. Iranian officials have already promised retaliation.

"In the last days of their gambling ally's political life, the Zionists seek to intensify and increase pressure on Iran to wage a full-blown war," said Hossein Dehghan, an adviser to Iran's supreme leader, according to The Associated Press. "We will descend like lightning on the killers of this oppressed martyr and we will make them regret their actions!"

Previous cyberattacks by the U.S. and Israel, and assassinations of scientists haven't stopped Iran's nuclear program. This attack won't either, said Ariane Tabatabai of the German Marshall Fund.

"A single man was not running the entirety of Iran's nuclear program," Tabatabai told NPR's All Things Considered. "This has become a much larger endeavor. And yes, he was an important player. But one of the more important parts of his role was to develop that infrastructure, to train others, to be able to continue the program. ... I wouldn't be surprised if you saw a bit more of the push within the system to go in the direction of a nuclear weapon."

NPR's Peter Kenyon, Daniel Estrin, Tom Bowman, Michele Kelemen, Colin Dwyer and James Doubek contributed to this report.

Iranian Nuclear Scientist Mohsen Fakhrizadeh Killed By 'Terrorists,' Iran Says : NPR

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Iran: Top nuclear scientist 'assassinated,' says state media Iranian media have reported that Mohsen Fakhrizadeh, said by Israel to have led a secret military nuclear program, has been assassinated by "terrorists." Tehran has pointed the finger at one of its regional adversaries. DW, November 27, 2020 Mohsen Fakhrizadeh 'assassinated' Iranian state television said on Friday that Mohsen Fakhrizadeh, a prominent nuclear scientist, had been "assassinated" in an ambush near Tehran. State media reported that the physicist died in hospital of injuries sustained after armed assassins gunned him down in his car. "Unfortunately, the medical team did not succeed in reviving him, and a few minutes ago, this manager and scientist achieved the high status of martyrdom after years of effort and struggle," a statement by Iran's armed forces carried by state media said.  State TV cited sources confirming the death but did not provide any further details. The attack reportedly happened in the city of Absard. Iran points finger at Israel In a letter to UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres and the UN Security Council, Iran's UN envoy Majid Takht Ravanchi said there were "serious indications of Israeli responsibility." "Warning against any adventuristic measures by the United States and Israel against my country, particularly during the remaining period of the current administration of the United States in office, the Islamic Republic of Iran reserves its rights to take all necessary measures to defend its people and secure its interests," read part of the letter, which was seen by Reuters. Iranian Foreign Minister Javad Zarif made similar comments earlier on Friday, tweeting that there was evidence Israel was involved. "Terrorists murdered an eminent Iranian scientist today. This cowardice — with serious indications of Israeli role — shows desperate warmongering of perpetrators," he wrote. "In the last days of the political life of their ... ally (US President Donald Trump), the Zionists (Israel) seek to intensify pressure on Iran and create a full-blown war," top Iranian military commander Hossein Dehghan tweeted. Israel declines to comment Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office has said it would not comment on the attack. But revelations that Netanyahu once called out Fakhrizadeh's name in a news conference, saying "remember that name" has fueled speculation of the country's involvement. Questions over who was responsible Referring to the rumors, Trita Parsi, executive vice president of US think-tank The Quincy Institute for Responsible Statecraft, told DW that "not that many" countries have "the capacity, the intent and the motivation" to carry out an operation of this kind, other than Israel and the US. He warned that retaliation by Iran would almost be a "win-win situation" for Israel and that Prime Minister Netanyahu "has been looking for quite some time" for a fight with Tehran. Speculation has been building since US President Donald Trump's election defeat of a planned US-Israeli strike on Iran before he leaves office, which could possibly lead to a full-scale war, and which Parsi said would be "absolutely devastating for the region as a whole." "This is not Iraq. this is not Afghanistan. It's going to be much, much worse," he warned. Prepare for 'strong reaction' Another Iran expert, Cornelius Adebahr from the German Council of Foreign Relations, told DW that the world can expect a "strong reaction" from Iran to the assassination "Iran will be pressed to retaliate. There will be domestic pressure in Iran and at the same time, it will be hard for the United States or any other major power to make any concessions to Iran if it is seen as retaliating against regional adversaries," he said. Ex-CIA chief condemns 'criminal act' Former CIA director John Brennan warned that the killing could spark a wider problem in the Middle East. "This was a criminal act and highly reckless. It risks lethal retaliation and a new round of regional conflict," tweeted Brennan. Ellie Geranmayeh of the European Council on International Relations tweeted the "objective behind the killing wasn't to hinder [Iran's] nuclear programme but to undermine diplomacy." She added that recent high-level visits by the US to Israel and Saudi Arabia "raised flags something being cooked up" that could potentially "complicate" diplomatic efforts by incoming US President-elect Joe Biden. Leader of nuclear program 'Hope' Fakhrizadeh led a nuclear program called "Amad" or "Hope" that was disbanded in the 2000s. Israel and the West alleged it was a military operation, but Tehran has long said that all its nuclear activities are peaceful. The International Atomic Energy Agency says Iran "carried out activities relevant to the development of a nuclear explosive device'' in a "structured program'' through the end of 2003. The power has more recently been accused of stockpiling 10 times the amount of uranium agreed in a precarious nuclear deal. ed,tj,kbd/rs (AP, dpa, AFP, Reuters)

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