Mohsen Fakhrizadeh – Head of Iran’s nuclear weapons program has died in a deadly attack near Iranian capital Tehran.
As per details, Mohsen Fakhrizadeh was targeted in Damavand county with a bomb which was followed by extensive shooting.
Mohsen Fakhrizadeh was rushed to the hospital. However, he succumbed to his injures and passed away.
Known as “father of the Iranian bomb”, Mohsen Fakhrizadeh was considered to be the most significant figure behind Iran’s nuclear weapons program
The development holds critical significance as Fakhrizadeh was specifically mentioned in Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu’s presentation about Iran’s nuclear program back in May 2018.
Iran has repeatedly accused Israel of carrying out assassinations and sabotage operations targeting Iran’s nuclear program and high-level individuals associated with it.
Who was Mohsen Fakhrizadeh?
Mohsen Fakhrizadeh was an Iranian officer in the Iranian Revolutionary Guard and a Professor of physics at the Imam Hussein University, Tehran. Fakhrizadeh-Mahabadi had been subject to a UN Security Council asset freeze and travel notification requirements because the Council said the IAEA had asked to interview Fakhrizadeh-Mahabadi and Iran refused to make him available.
With respect to Fakhrizadeh-Mahabadi’s work Iran has provided some information which the IAEA says “are not inconsistent with its findings”, but the IAEA continues to seek corroboration of its findings
According to the UN designation, Fakhrizadeh-Mahabadi was a senior Ministry of Defence and Armed Forces Logistics scientist and former head of the Physics Research Center (PHRC).
Western intelligence alleged he was the man in charge of Iran’s nuclear program, Project 111. Western powers assert Project 111 is or was an attempt to create a nuclear bomb for Iran, though Iran claims its program is solely for civilian purposes and that the information provided by Western intelligence agencies is fake or forged.
According to the New York Times, Mr. Fakrizadeh was described in classified portions of American intelligence reports as deeply involved in an effort to design a nuclear warhead for Iran.
An internal 2007 Iranian document leaked to the Sunday Times identified Fakhrizadeh as the chairman of the Field for the Expansion of Deployment of Advanced Technology (FEDAT), the cover name for the organization running Iran’s nuclear weapons program.