Israeli assassination of Iranian nuclear scientist won’t go unanswered

By Stephen Lendman

Since establishment of Israel in 1948 by displacing hundreds of thousands of Palestinians from their land, mass murdering others, and terrorizing remaining ones, Israeli authorities repeatedly committed the highest of high crimes internally and cross-border — with impunity.

Throughout the Islamic Republic's history since its establishment in 1979, Iran has been a prime Israeli target — repeatedly committing crimes against the state and its people.

Last Friday, its hitmen assassinated senior Iranian nuclear scientist Mohsen Fakhrizadeh — a Netanyahu regime act of cold-blooded murder.

It won’t go unanswered, Iran has to respond in its own way at a time of its choosing.

On Monday, Iran’s Defense Minister Amir Hatami said the following:

“We will pursue the perpetrators till the end,” adding:

“I sincerely thank all the nations and governments that sympathized with Iran for this incident and expressed their disgust with the assassination.”

Funding for Iranian defense projects will be doubled, he said.

On Tuesday, Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Saeed Khatibzadeh stressed that the Islamic Republic “will give an excruciating response to the perpetrators and murderers of martyr Fakhrizadeh,” adding:

Throughout the region, “all but one country condemned the terrorist attack” — apartheid Israel the exception.

“Iran’s neighboring countries and allies, and even those who were not allies of Iran, deplored the assassination.”

“All know that this condemnation is aimed at the occupying regime of Israel.”

Addressing Fakhrizadeh’s cold-blooded murder tops the agenda of Iran’s Foreign Ministry.

Khatibzadeh dismissed media reports, including by RT, alleging the assassination of an IRGC general along the Iran/Iraq border on Monday — calling the claim “media propaganda.”

Iran’s Armed Forces reported that no such incident occurred.

By letter on Monday to head of the UN office on drugs and crime (UNODC), Iran’s envoy to the world body Kazem Gharibabadi said the following:

“The assassination of Dr. Mohsen Fakhrizadeh is the continuation of other terrorist measures (against the Iranian nation), which started a decade ago through the assassination of several Iranian nuclear scientists in 2010, 2011 and 2012, and calls for due attention from the international community and relevant international organizations.”

He added that acts of state terror like what took the life of Fakhrizadeh and countless others threaten world peace, stability and security.

They constitute flagrant breaches of the UN Charter and other international law.

Evidence suggests Israeli responsibility for targeted assassinations in Iran, Gharibabadi stressed.

He called on the international community to “fulfill its commitments with respect to the international law on the fight against terrorism and to strongly condemn the inhumane assassination (of the Iranian scientist) in the strongest terms,” adding:

“The Islamic Republic of Iran believes that the adoption of a double-standard approach to countries in the battle against terrorism will not only be unconstructive but will also lead to the failure of the global fight against terrorism and will further contribute to and nurture terrorism.”

Russia’s Foreign Ministry condemned Fakhrizadeh’s assassination, calling it a “provocative terrorist act aimed at destabilizing the situation and fueling a potential conflict in the region,” adding:

“Stability and security of the Middle East and the Persian Gulf region is a constant priority of the Russian Federation.”

On Monday, China’s Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying said the following about Fakhrizadeh’s assassination:

“China is shocked by the killing of the Iranian scientist and condemns this violent crime.”

“We hope that the incident will be thoroughly investigated.”

“China opposes any act that aggravates regional tensions and undermines regional peace and stability.”

“As the current situation in the region is highly complex and sensitive, all parties should work together to ease regional tensions and maintain regional peace and stability.”

Retired four-star US Admiral William McRaven said the following about Fakhrizadeh’s assassination:

“The Iranians are going to be in a position where they have to retaliate.”

“I don’t see any way around it. They’re going to have to save face.”

“So now the issue becomes, what does that retaliation look like? Does that then begin to escalate the problems in the region?”

Pompeo likely had discussed the scientist assassination with Netanyahu: Journalist

Mike Pompeo very likely had discussed the assassination of Iranian nuclear scientist Mohsen Fakhrizadeh with Netanyahu during his recent visit to Israel, according to Patrick Lawrence.

Speaker of Iran’s Parliament Baqer Qalibaf said the right of self-defense affords Iran the legal right to retaliate against the Friday incident.

Its ruling authorities will pursue “definitive punishment” on the “perpetrators of the crime.”

Pointing fingers at Israel, he stressed that it “ha(s) a long history of targeted extraterritorial assassinations in the sensitive West Asia region and beyond,” adding:

Iran’s Parliament “considers this criminal and felonious act to be a clear example of organized terrorism, in obvious contradiction and flagrant violation of the principle of national sovereignty of the Islamic Republic of Iran, and strongly condemns it.”

Friday’s assassination “will not disrupt the scientific and defense development and peaceful programs for (achieving) new technologies in the Islamic Republic, but will rather increase the nation’s efforts to reinforce the country’s scientific and defensive power.”

“Undoubtedly, Islamic Republic of Iran — which has always sought to promote peace and security in the region and the world and played a key role in the fight against terrorism — will focus on pursuing definitive punishment of those who ordered and committed this terrorist act.”

“It also reserves its right to act within the framework of the principle of legitimate defense in countering organized terrorist acts.”

Haaretz asked if Fakhrizadeh’s assassination “blasted a hole in the Biden-Netanyahu relationship (sic)?”

Not in the slightest! Under both right wings of its war party, US support for Israel is rock-solid.

Both countries partner in their wars of aggression against invented enemies.

The CIA and Mossad collaborate in committing numerous high crimes in the region and elsewhere.

Biden/Harris will continue Trump regime war on Iran by other means — along with waging hot wars on targeted countries.

That’s how the scourge of imperial operates — how it has earlier and will ahead.

Nuclear scientist laid to rest as Iran vows to continue his work

Iran

Stephen Lendman, born in 1934 in Boston, started writing on major world and national issues began in summer 2005. In early 2007, radio hosting followed. Lendman now hosts the Progressive Radio News Hour on the Progressive Radio Network three times weekly. Distinguished guests are featured. Listen live or archived. Major world and national issues are discussed. Lendman is a 2008 Project Censored winner and 2011 Mexican Journalists Club international journalism award recipient.

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