Will the world community condemn the murder of Iran’s nuclear scientist?
The assassination of Iran’s top nuclear scientist, likely by Israel with the go-ahead from the US administration, is a desperate attempt to use Donald Trump’s last days in office to sabotage Joe Biden’s chances of successful diplomacy with Iran.
The assassination of Iran’s top nuclear scientist, likely by Israel with the go-ahead from the US administration, is a desperate attempt to use Donald Trump’s last days in office to sabotage Joe Biden’s chances of successful diplomacy with Iran.
THE SITE OF MOHSEN FAKHRIZADEH’S ASSASSINATION, NOVEMBER 27, 2020
(PHOTO: FARS NEWS AGENCY/WIKIMEDIA)
Israel used all four years of Trump’s presidency to entrench its systems of occupation and apartheid. Now that Joe Biden has won the U.S. election, the assassination of Iran’s top nuclear scientist, likely by Israel with the go-ahead from the US administration, is a desperate attempt to use Trump’s last days in office to sabotage Biden’s chances of successful diplomacy with Iran. Biden, Congress and the world community can’t let that happen.
On Friday, November 27, Iran’s top nuclear scientist, Mohsen Fakhrizadeh, was assassinated in the Iranian city of Absard outside of Tehran. First, a truck with explosives blew up near the car carrying Fakhrizadeh. Then, gunmen started firing on Fakhrizadeh’s car. The immediate speculation was that Israel had carried out the attack, perhaps with the support of the Iranian terrorist group the People’s Mujahedin Organization of Iran (MEK). Iranian Foreign Minister Javad Zarif tweeted that there were “serious indications of [an] Israeli role” in the assassination.
All indications indeed point to Israel. In 2018, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu identified this scientist, Fakhrizadeh, as a target of his administration during a presentation in which he claimed that Israel had obtained secret Iranian files that alleged the country was not actually abiding by the Iran Nuclear Deal. “Remember that name, Fakhrizadeh. So here’s his directive, right here,” Netanyahu said.
Fakhrizadeh was far from the first assassination of an Iranian nuclear scientist. Between 2010 and 2012, four Iranian nuclear scientists were assassinated—Masoud Alimohammadi, Majid Shahriari, Darioush Rezaeinejad and Mostafa Ahmadi Roshan. Though Israel never took official credit for the extrajudicial executions, reports were fairly conclusive that Israel, working with the MEK, were behind the killings. The Israeli government never denied the allegations.
The assassination of Fakhrizadeh also follows reports that the Israeli government recently instructed its senior military officials to prepare for a possible U.S. strike on Iran, likely referring to a narrowly averted plan by President Trump to bomb Iran’s Natanz nuclear site. Furthermore, there was a clandestine meeting between Netanyahu and Saudi ruler Mohammed bin Salman. Among the topics of conversation were normalization between the two countries and their shared antagonism towards Iran.
Israel’s attacks on Iran’s nuclear activities are particularly galling given that Israel, not Iran, is the only country in the Middle East in possession of nuclear weapons, and Israel refuses to sign the International Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons. Iran, on the other hand, doesn’t have nuclear weapons and it has opened itself up to the most intrusive international inspections ever implemented. Adding to this absurd double standard is the intense pressure on Iran from the United States—a nation that has more nuclear weapons than any country on earth.
Given the close relationship between Netanyahu and Trump, and the seriousness of this attack, it is very likely that this assassination was carried out with the green light from Trump himself. Trump has spent his time in the White House destroying the progress the Obama administration made in easing the conflict with Iran. He withdrew from the nuclear deal and imposed an unending stream of crippling sanctions that have affected everything from the price of food and housing, to Iran’s ability to obtain life-saving medicines during the pandemic. He has blocked Iran from getting an IMF $5 billion emergency loan to deal with the pandemic. In January, Trump brought the US to the brink of war by assassinating Iranian General Qassem Soleimani, and in an early November meeting with his top security advisors, and right before the assassination of Fakhrizadeh, Trump himself reportedly raised the possibility of a military strike against Iran’s nuclear facilities.
After the news broke of the assassination, Trump expressed implicit approval of the attack by retweeting Israeli journalist and expert on the Israeli Mossad intelligence service, Yossi Melman, who described the killing of Fahkrizadeh as a “major psychological and professional blow for Iran.”
Iran has responded to these intense provocations with extreme patience and reserve. The government was hoping for a change in the White House and Biden’s victory signaled the possibility of both the U.S. and Iran going back into compliance with the nuclear deal. This recent assassination, however, further strengthens the hands of Iranian hardliners who say it was a mistake to negotiate with the United States, and that Iran should just leave the nuclear deal and build a nuclear weapon for its own defense.
Iranian-American analyst Negar Mortazavi bemoaned the chilling effect the assassination will have on Iran’s political space. “The atmosphere will be even more securitized, civil society and political opposition will be pressured even more, and the anti-West discourse will be strengthened in Iran’s upcoming presidential election,” she tweeted.
The hardliners already won the majority of seats in the February parliamentary elections and are predicted to win the presidential elections scheduled for June. So the window for negotiations is a narrow one of four months immediately after Biden’s inauguration. W. What happens between now and January 20 could derail negotiations before they even start.
Jamal Abdi, president of the National Iranian American Council, said that US and Israeli efforts to sabotage Iran’s nuclear program “have now morphed into Trump & Netanyahu sabotaging the next US President. They are trying to goad Iran into provocations & accelerating nuclear work—exactly what they claim to oppose. Their real fear is US & Iran talking.”
That’s why U.S. members of Congress, and President-elect Joe Biden himself, must vigorously condemn this act and affirm their commitment to the US rejoining the nuclear deal. When Israel assassinated other nuclear scientists during the Obama administration, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton denounced the murders, understanding that such illegal actions made negotiations infinitely more difficult.
The European Union, as well as some important US figures, have already condemned the attack. Connecticut Senator Chris Murphy pointed out the risks involved in normalizing assassinations, how the killing will make it harder to restart the Iran Nuclear agreement, and how the assassination of General Soleimani backfired from a security standpoint. Former Obama advisor Ben Rhodes tweeted that it was an “outrageous action aimed at undermining diplomacy,” and former CIA head John Brennan called the assassination “criminal” and “highly reckless,” risking “lethal retaliation and a new round of regional conflict,” but rather than putting the responsibility on the U.S. and Israel to stop the provocations, he called on Iran to “be wise” and “resist the urge to respond.”
Many on Twitter have raised the question of what the world response would be if the roles were reversed and Iran assassinated an Israeli nuclear scientist. Without a doubt, the U.S. administration, whether Democrat or Republican, would be outraged and supportive of a swift military response. But if we want to avoid escalation, then we must hope that Iran will not retaliate, at least not during Trump’s last days in office.
The only way to stop this crisis from spiraling out of control is for the world community to condemn the act, and demand a UN investigation and accountability for the perpetrators. The countries that joined Iran and the United States in signing the 2015 nuclear agreement —Russia, China, Germany, the UK and France—must not only oppose the assassination but publicly recommit to upholding the nuclear deal. President-elect Joe Biden must send a clear message to Israel that under his administration, these illegal acts will have consequences. He must also send a clear message to Iran that he intends to quickly re-enter the nuclear deal, stop blocking Iran’s $5 billion IMF loan request, and begin a new era of diplomacy to dial back the intense conflict he inherited from Trump’s recklessness.
BY MEDEA BENJAMIN AND ARIEL GOLD
Israel used all four years of Trump’s presidency to entrench its systems of occupation and apartheid. Now that Joe Biden has won the U.S. election, the assassination of Iran’s top nuclear scientist, likely by Israel with the go-ahead from the US administration, is a desperate attempt to use Trump’s last days in office to sabotage Biden’s chances of successful diplomacy with Iran. Biden, Congress and the world community can’t let that happen.
On Friday, November 27, Iran’s top nuclear scientist, Mohsen Fakhrizadeh, was assassinated in the Iranian city of Absard outside of Tehran. First, a truck with explosives blew up near the car carrying Fakhrizadeh. Then, gunmen started firing on Fakhrizadeh’s car. The immediate speculation was that Israel had carried out the attack, perhaps with the support of the Iranian terrorist group the People’s Mujahedin Organization of Iran (MEK). Iranian Foreign Minister Javad Zarif tweeted that there were “serious indications of [an] Israeli role” in the assassination.
All indications indeed point to Israel. In 2018, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu identified this scientist, Fakhrizadeh, as a target of his administration during a presentation in which he claimed that Israel had obtained secret Iranian files that alleged the country was not actually abiding by the Iran Nuclear Deal. “Remember that name, Fakhrizadeh. So here’s his directive, right here,” Netanyahu said.
Fakhrizadeh was far from the first assassination of an Iranian nuclear scientist. Between 2010 and 2012, four Iranian nuclear scientists were assassinated—Masoud Alimohammadi, Majid Shahriari, Darioush Rezaeinejad and Mostafa Ahmadi Roshan. Though Israel never took official credit for the extrajudicial executions, reports were fairly conclusive that Israel, working with the MEK, were behind the killings. The Israeli government never denied the allegations.
The assassination of Fakhrizadeh also follows reports that the Israeli government recently instructed its senior military officials to prepare for a possible U.S. strike on Iran, likely referring to a narrowly averted plan by President Trump to bomb Iran’s Natanz nuclear site. Furthermore, there was a clandestine meeting between Netanyahu and Saudi ruler Mohammed bin Salman. Among the topics of conversation were normalization between the two countries and their shared antagonism towards Iran.
Israel’s attacks on Iran’s nuclear activities are particularly galling given that Israel, not Iran, is the only country in the Middle East in possession of nuclear weapons, and Israel refuses to sign the International Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons. Iran, on the other hand, doesn’t have nuclear weapons and it has opened itself up to the most intrusive international inspections ever implemented. Adding to this absurd double standard is the intense pressure on Iran from the United States—a nation that has more nuclear weapons than any country on earth.
Given the close relationship between Netanyahu and Trump, and the seriousness of this attack, it is very likely that this assassination was carried out with the green light from Trump himself. Trump has spent his time in the White House destroying the progress the Obama administration made in easing the conflict with Iran. He withdrew from the nuclear deal and imposed an unending stream of crippling sanctions that have affected everything from the price of food and housing, to Iran’s ability to obtain life-saving medicines during the pandemic. He has blocked Iran from getting an IMF $5 billion emergency loan to deal with the pandemic. In January, Trump brought the US to the brink of war by assassinating Iranian General Qassem Soleimani, and in an early November meeting with his top security advisors, and right before the assassination of Fakhrizadeh, Trump himself reportedly raised the possibility of a military strike against Iran’s nuclear facilities.
After the news broke of the assassination, Trump expressed implicit approval of the attack by retweeting Israeli journalist and expert on the Israeli Mossad intelligence service, Yossi Melman, who described the killing of Fahkrizadeh as a “major psychological and professional blow for Iran.”
Iran has responded to these intense provocations with extreme patience and reserve. The government was hoping for a change in the White House and Biden’s victory signaled the possibility of both the U.S. and Iran going back into compliance with the nuclear deal. This recent assassination, however, further strengthens the hands of Iranian hardliners who say it was a mistake to negotiate with the United States, and that Iran should just leave the nuclear deal and build a nuclear weapon for its own defense.
Iranian-American analyst Negar Mortazavi bemoaned the chilling effect the assassination will have on Iran’s political space. “The atmosphere will be even more securitized, civil society and political opposition will be pressured even more, and the anti-West discourse will be strengthened in Iran’s upcoming presidential election,” she tweeted.
The hardliners already won the majority of seats in the February parliamentary elections and are predicted to win the presidential elections scheduled for June. So the window for negotiations is a narrow one of four months immediately after Biden’s inauguration. W. What happens between now and January 20 could derail negotiations before they even start.
Jamal Abdi, president of the National Iranian American Council, said that US and Israeli efforts to sabotage Iran’s nuclear program “have now morphed into Trump & Netanyahu sabotaging the next US President. They are trying to goad Iran into provocations & accelerating nuclear work—exactly what they claim to oppose. Their real fear is US & Iran talking.”
That’s why U.S. members of Congress, and President-elect Joe Biden himself, must vigorously condemn this act and affirm their commitment to the US rejoining the nuclear deal. When Israel assassinated other nuclear scientists during the Obama administration, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton denounced the murders, understanding that such illegal actions made negotiations infinitely more difficult.
The European Union, as well as some important US figures, have already condemned the attack. Connecticut Senator Chris Murphy pointed out the risks involved in normalizing assassinations, how the killing will make it harder to restart the Iran Nuclear agreement, and how the assassination of General Soleimani backfired from a security standpoint. Former Obama advisor Ben Rhodes tweeted that it was an “outrageous action aimed at undermining diplomacy,” and former CIA head John Brennan called the assassination “criminal” and “highly reckless,” risking “lethal retaliation and a new round of regional conflict,” but rather than putting the responsibility on the U.S. and Israel to stop the provocations, he called on Iran to “be wise” and “resist the urge to respond.”
Many on Twitter have raised the question of what the world response would be if the roles were reversed and Iran assassinated an Israeli nuclear scientist. Without a doubt, the U.S. administration, whether Democrat or Republican, would be outraged and supportive of a swift military response. But if we want to avoid escalation, then we must hope that Iran will not retaliate, at least not during Trump’s last days in office.
The only way to stop this crisis from spiraling out of control is for the world community to condemn the act, and demand a UN investigation and accountability for the perpetrators. The countries that joined Iran and the United States in signing the 2015 nuclear agreement —Russia, China, Germany, the UK and France—must not only oppose the assassination but publicly recommit to upholding the nuclear deal. President-elect Joe Biden must send a clear message to Israel that under his administration, these illegal acts will have consequences. He must also send a clear message to Iran that he intends to quickly re-enter the nuclear deal, stop blocking Iran’s $5 billion IMF loan request, and begin a new era of diplomacy to dial back the intense conflict he inherited from Trump’s recklessness.
Turkey describes killing of Mohsen Fakhrizadeh as ‘act of terrorism’ while the EU calls it ‘criminal’ and urges ‘maximum restraint’.
Prominent Iranian scientist Mohsen Fakhrizadeh is seen in Iran, in this undated photo
[File: Official Khamenei Website/WANA (West Asia News Agency)/Handout/Reuters]
28 Nov 2020
A high-ranking Iranian nuclear physicist, Mohsen Fakhrizadeh, was assassinated in an ambush near Iran’s capital, Tehran, on Friday.
Fakhrizadeh was shot “by terrorists” in his vehicle in Absard, a suburb in eastern Tehran, later succumbing to his wounds in what was described as a “martyr’s death”, according to Iran’s foreign ministry.
A high-ranking Iranian nuclear physicist, Mohsen Fakhrizadeh, was assassinated in an ambush near Iran’s capital, Tehran, on Friday.
Fakhrizadeh was shot “by terrorists” in his vehicle in Absard, a suburb in eastern Tehran, later succumbing to his wounds in what was described as a “martyr’s death”, according to Iran’s foreign ministry.
There has been no claim of responsibility for the killing of Fakhrizadeh, who had long been suspected by Western and Israeli intelligence of leading the nation’s military nuclear programme until its disbanding in the early 2000s.
But some have pointed the finger at Israel and the United States for the assassination, which threatens to increase tensions between Tehran and Washington in the final days of the Donald Trump presidency.
Here is how the world has reacted so far to Fakhrizadeh’s killing:
Iran
Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Hosseini Khamenei said Iran’s first priority after the killing was the “definitive punishment of the perpetrators and those who ordered it”, while President Hassan Rouhani accused Israel of being behind the assassination.
“Once again, the evil hands of global arrogance were stained with the blood of the mercenary usurper Zionist regime,” Rouhani said in a statement.
The country’s Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif also accused Israel of carrying out the attack.
Terrorists murdered an eminent Iranian scientist today. This cowardice—with serious indications of Israeli role—shows desperate warmongering of perpetrators
Iran calls on int'l community—and especially EU—to end their shameful double standards & condemn this act of state terror.
— Javad Zarif (@JZarif) November 27, 2020
Israel
Cabinet minister for Settlement Affairs Tzachi Hanegbi said he had “no clue” who was behind the Fakhrizadeh killing.
“I have no clue who did it. It’s not that my lips are sealed because I’m being responsible, I really have no clue,” Hanegbi, a confidant of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, told N12’s Meet the Press.
European Union
A statement from a spokesperson for the European Union called Fakhrizadeh’s killing “a criminal act” that “runs counter to the principle of respect for human rights the EU stands for”.
It also urged all parties to show “calm and maximum restraint”.
“In these uncertain times, it is more important than ever for all parties to remain calm and exercise maximum restraint in order to avoid escalation which cannot be in anyone’s interest,” the statement said.
Qatar
Qatari Foreign Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani condemned the assassination in a phone call with Zarif.
In the phone call, Sheikh Mohammed said “such steps will only contribute to pouring more fuel on the fire at a time when the region and the international community are searching for ways to reduce tension and return to the table of dialogue and diplomacy”, according to QNA, Qatar’s state news agency.
He also extended Qatar’s condolences to the government and the people of Iran and called for self-restraint.
Qatari Foreign Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani condemned the assassination in a phone call with Zarif.
In the phone call, Sheikh Mohammed said “such steps will only contribute to pouring more fuel on the fire at a time when the region and the international community are searching for ways to reduce tension and return to the table of dialogue and diplomacy”, according to QNA, Qatar’s state news agency.
He also extended Qatar’s condolences to the government and the people of Iran and called for self-restraint.
United Nations
The UN condemned Fakhrizadeh’s killing while urging restraint in order to avoid an “escalation of tensions”.
“We urge restraint and the need to avoid any actions that could lead to an escalation of tensions in the region,” a UN spokesman said. “We condemn any assassination or extrajudicial killing.”
Syria
Syria’s Foreign Minister Faisal Mekdad accused Israel and “those who supported it” of being behind Fakhrizadeh’s assassination, an act he said would only fuel more tensions in the region.
Mekdad was quoted by state media as telling the Iranian envoy in Damascus that Syria was confident Iran would confront what he called a “terrorist act”.
Turkey
Turkey’s parliamentary speaker referred to those responsible for the killing as “terrorist”.
“The assassination of the Iranian scientist was an act of terrorism. Whether it was committed by an illegal or a “legal” organization or a state makes no difference,” Mustafa Sentop said on Twitter.
Assassination of an Iranian scientist is an act of terrorism. Whether it is committed by an illegal or a “legal” organization or a State makes no difference. Terrorism is always terrorism, anyone who commits an act of terrorism is a terrorist. We oppose illegality in intl. arena.
— Prof. Dr. Mustafa Şentop (@MustafaSentop) November 28, 2020
Germany
Germany called for calm and said all sides should avoid taking any steps that could lead to escalation.
“We call on all parties to avoid taking any action which could lead to a new escalation of the situation” which “we absolutely do not need at this moment,” a German foreign ministry spokesman said.
Venezuela
Minister of Foreign Affairs Jorge Arreaza condemned the attack on Twitter, calling the killing of the scientist a “terrorist attack”.
#COMUNICADO | Venezuela condena el asesinato del eminente científico iraní, Dr. Mohsen Fajrizade, Presidente de la Organización de Investigación e Innovación Defensiva de la República Islámica de Irán, quien perdió la vida en un atentado terrorista en las cercanías de Teherán. pic.twitter.com/hWQDvLGESS
— Jorge Arreaza M (@jaarreaza) November 27, 2020
SOURCE : AL JAZEERA AND NEWS AGENCIES
Killing of Iranian scientist a ‘violation of human rights’: Qatar
Qatar’s deputy PM says assassination of Mohsen Fakhrizadeh ‘will only contribute to pouring more fuel on the fire’.
Qatar’s deputy PM says assassination of Mohsen Fakhrizadeh ‘will only contribute to pouring more fuel on the fire’.
Qatar's Deputy Prime Minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani expressed his condolences in a phone call with Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif
[File: Erin Scott/AFP]
28 Nov 2020
Qatar has condemned Friday’s assassination of Iranian nuclear physicist Mohsen Fakhrizadeh, calling it “a clear violation of human rights”.
Qatar’s Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani expressed his condolences in a phone call on Saturday with Iran’s Minister of Foreign Affairs Mohammad Javad Zarif.
Qatar has condemned Friday’s assassination of Iranian nuclear physicist Mohsen Fakhrizadeh, calling it “a clear violation of human rights”.
Qatar’s Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani expressed his condolences in a phone call on Saturday with Iran’s Minister of Foreign Affairs Mohammad Javad Zarif.
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Rouhani accuses ‘mercenary’ Israel of killing top Iran scientist
Iranian media reported on Friday that Fakhrizadeh died in hospital after he was shot in his car in an ambush east of Tehran.
Fakhrizadeh served as the head of the research and innovation organisation of Iran’s defence ministry at the time of his death.
The West has long suspected Fakhrizadeh of being the mastermind of Iranian efforts to develop nuclear weapons, but Iran denies he was involved in any such undertaking.
Al Thani stressed that the scientist’s murder “will only contribute to pouring more fuel on the fire at a time when the region and the international community are searching for ways to reduce tension and return to the table of dialogue and diplomacy”, Qatar news agency (QNA) e
Al Thani “called for restraint,” it said.
During the call, the ministers reviewed bilateral cooperation relations and issues of common concern, QNA reported.
Iranian President Hassan Rouhani has accused “mercenary” Israel of killing its top scientist, state TV reported on Saturday.
Israel has declined to comment on the killing of Fakhrizadeh.
The assassination comes as US President Donald Trump, who has been fervently backed by Israel in his “maximum pressure” campaign on Iran, is slated to leave office in less than two months after losing the presidential election to Democrat Joe Biden.
In May 2018, Trump unilaterally withdrew from Iran’s 2015 nuclear deal with world powers and imposed harsh economic sanctions on Iran that have only escalated since.
In the past year, the Trump administration has also tried to make it harder for a Biden administration to come back to the nuclear accord through retargeting Iranian entities and individuals that were already sanctioned with new terrorism-related designations.
Iranian media reported on Friday that Fakhrizadeh died in hospital after he was shot in his car in an ambush east of Tehran.
Fakhrizadeh served as the head of the research and innovation organisation of Iran’s defence ministry at the time of his death.
The West has long suspected Fakhrizadeh of being the mastermind of Iranian efforts to develop nuclear weapons, but Iran denies he was involved in any such undertaking.
Al Thani stressed that the scientist’s murder “will only contribute to pouring more fuel on the fire at a time when the region and the international community are searching for ways to reduce tension and return to the table of dialogue and diplomacy”, Qatar news agency (QNA) e
Al Thani “called for restraint,” it said.
During the call, the ministers reviewed bilateral cooperation relations and issues of common concern, QNA reported.
Iranian President Hassan Rouhani has accused “mercenary” Israel of killing its top scientist, state TV reported on Saturday.
Israel has declined to comment on the killing of Fakhrizadeh.
The assassination comes as US President Donald Trump, who has been fervently backed by Israel in his “maximum pressure” campaign on Iran, is slated to leave office in less than two months after losing the presidential election to Democrat Joe Biden.
In May 2018, Trump unilaterally withdrew from Iran’s 2015 nuclear deal with world powers and imposed harsh economic sanctions on Iran that have only escalated since.
In the past year, the Trump administration has also tried to make it harder for a Biden administration to come back to the nuclear accord through retargeting Iranian entities and individuals that were already sanctioned with new terrorism-related designations.
SOURCE : AL JAZEERA AND NEWS AGENCIES
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