Iran says Israel remotely killed military nuclear scientist
In this picture released by the Iranian Defense Ministry and taken on Saturday, Nov. 28, 2020, caretakers from the Imam Reza holy shrine, carry the flag draped coffin of Mohsen Fakhrizadeh, an Iranian scientist linked to the country's disbanded military nuclear program, who was killed on Friday, during a funeral ceremony in the northeastern city of Mashhad, Iran. An opinion piece published by a hard-line Iranian newspaper has suggested that Iran must attack the Israeli port city of Haifa if Israel carried out the killing of a scientist.
IRANIAN DEFENSE MINISTRY/AP
By ASSOCIATED PRESS Published: November 30, 2020
TEHRAN, Iran — A top Iranian security official says Israel used “electronic devices” to remotely kill a military nuclear scientist.
Ali Shamkhani, the secretary of the country’s Supreme National Security Council, made the comment Monday to Iranian state television at the funeral for Mohsen Fakhrizadeh.
Shamkhani's remark drastically changes the story of Fakhrizadeh's killing Friday. Authorities initially said a truck exploded and then gunmen opened fire on the scientist, killing him.
State TV’s English-language Press TV earlier reported a weapon recovered from the scene of the attack bore “the logo and specifications of the Israeli military industry.” State TV’s Arabic-language channel, Al-Alam, claimed the weapons used were “controlled by satellite,” a claim also made Sunday by the semiofficial Fars news agency. None of the outlets immediately offered evidence supporting their claims.
Israel, long suspected of killing Iranian nuclear scientists over the last decade, has declined to comment on the attack.
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