Iran’s president has blamed Israel for the killing of a top nuclear scientist on Friday, and said it would not slow down the country’s nuclear programme.
Hassan Rouhani also said Iran would retaliate over Mohsen Fakhrizadeh’s killing at a time of its choosing. Fakhrizadeh was killed in an ambush in his car by gunmen in the town of Absard, east of the capital Tehran.
Israel has not commented, but it has previously accused him of being behind a covert nuclear weapons programme.
Fakhrizadeh was Iran’s most renowned nuclear scientist, who headed the ministry of defence’s research and innovation organisation.
His killing threatens to escalate tensions over Iran’s nuclear programme with the US and its close ally Israel. President Rouhani said his country would respond “in due course” but that Fakhrizadeh’s killing would not push Iran into making hasty decisions, in televised comments on Saturday.
(BBC)
