Iran held a funeral service Monday for the slain scientist who founded its military nuclear program two decades ago, vowing to redouble his work after the assassination pinned on arch-foe Israel.
An honor guard carried the casket containing the body of Mohsen Fakhrizadeh, who reportedly was gunned down in a military-style ambush Friday that Iranian officials have blamed on Israel. An arm of Iranian state television, citing an anonymous source, reported Monday that a weapon recovered from the scene appeared to be Israeli, as reported by the Associated Press (AP).
Fakhrizadeh headed Iran’s so-called AMAD program, which Israel and the West have alleged was a military operation looking at the feasibility of building a nuclear weapon. The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) says that the "structured program" ended in 2003. U.S. intelligence agencies concurred with that assessment in a 2007 report.
Israel insists Iran still maintains the ambition of developing nuclear weapons, pointing to Tehran’s ballistic missile program and research into other technologies. Iran long has maintained its nuclear program is peaceful.
Monday's service took place at an outdoor portion of Iran's Defense Ministry in Tehran, with officials including Revolutionary Guard chief Gen. Hossein Salami, the Guard's Quds Force leader Gen. Esmail Ghaani, civilian nuclear program chief Ali Akbar Sahei and Intelligence Minister Mamoud Alavi. They sat apart from each other and wore masks due to the coronavirus pandemic as reciters melodically read portions of the Quran and religious texts.
Defense Minister Gen. Amir Hatami gave a speech after kissing Fakhrizadeh's casket and putting his forehead against it. He said Fakhrizadeh's killing would make Iranians "more united, more determined."
"For the continuation of your path, we will continue with more speed and more power," Hatami said in comments aired live by state television.
Hatami also criticized countries that hadn't condemned Fakhrizadeh's killing, warning: "This will catch up with you someday."
Overnight, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), which just reached a normalization deal with Israel, issued a statement condemning "the heinous assassination." The UAE, home to Abu Dhabi and Dubai, warned it "could further fuel conflict in the region."
Iran's President Hassan Rouhani has accused arch-foe Israel of acting as a U.S. "mercenary," blaming it for the killing of Fakhrizadeh, and Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei has called for the perpetrators to be punished, Agence France-Presse (AFP) reported.
The assassination has led to demands for a strong response from the Iranian leadership and calls by some to avoid entering potential negotiations with the U.S., even as the hawkish presidency of Donald Trump draws to a close.
In response to the killing, Iran's parliament has begun a review of a bill that would stop inspections by the IAEA. The nuclear watchdog has provided an unprecedented, real-time look at Iran’s civilian nuclear program following the country’s 2015 nuclear deal with world powers.
The deal unraveled after Trump’s unilateral 2018 withdrawal of the U.S. from the accord. Iran’s civilian atomic program has since continued its experiments and now enriches a growing uranium stockpile up to 4.5% purity. That’s still far below weapons-grade levels of 90%, though experts warn Iran now has enough low-enriched uranium to reprocess into fuel for at least two atomic bombs if it chose to pursue them. The proposed bill reportedly also would require Iran’s civilian atomic program to produce at least 120 kilograms (265 pounds) of uranium enriched to 20% – a short technical step to 90%.