(credit): Wikipedia /   The flag of the Republic of  Iran

By Gary Raynaldo       DIPLOMATIC TIMES

The European Union condemned the killing of a top Iranian nuclear scientist as a “criminal act”  that Iran is blaming on Israel.   Mohsen Fakhrizadeh  was assassinated near the capital Tehran on Friday. Western intelligence agencies believe Fakhrizadeh was behind a covert Iranian nuclear weapons programme.

“27 November 2020 in Absard, Iran, an Iranian government official and several civilians were killed in a series of violent attacks. This is a criminal act and runs counter to the principle of respect for human rights the EU stands for. The High Representative expresses his condolences to the family members of the individuals who were killed, while wishing a prompt recovery to any other individuals who may have been injured.”

-EU Foreign Affairs Service

Iran’s president has accused Israel of killing the high-ranking Iranian nuclear physicist.  

“Once again, the evil hands of global arrogance were stained with the blood of the mercenary usurper Zionist regime,” President Hassan Rouhani said in a statement, according to a Iran state TV report on Saturday.

In a statement on Friday, the Iran Defense Ministry announced that the vehicle Fakhrizadeh was travelling in was attacked by armed terrorists in the afternoon on Friday.

“In the shootout between Fakhrizadeh’s bodyguards and the terrorists, the scientist was seriously wounded and taken to hospital.  Unfortunately, the medical team’s efforts to revive him were unsuccessful, and he succumbed to his injuries.”

-Iran Defense Ministry  statement.

The U.S. State Department and Pentagon declined to comment on the incident.  

Iran Nuclear Scientist’s Killing Complicates U.S. President-Elect Biden  Diplomacy 

Many are of the  opinion that the killing of Iran’s top nuclear scientist could   undermine U.S. President-elect Joe Biden’s goal of reviving diplomacy with Iran when he enters the White House in January. Some speculate that the assassination was an attempt to provoke military retaliation by Iran. Others speculate that the killing was not meant to impede Iran’s nuclear work, but to derail diplomacy for the incoming U.S. Biden administration with the Islamic Republic.