Tehran, Nov 28(UNI) Mohsen Fakhrizadeh Iran's most senior nuclear scientist was assassinated near the capital Tehran, this was confirmed by the country's defence ministry on Friday.
According to the defence ministry Fakhrizadeh died in hospital after an attack in Absard, in Damavand county, after "Armed terrorists targeted the vehicle carrying Mohsen Fakhrizadeh, head of the ministry's research and innovation organisation, a BBC report said.
This led to a gunfight between the terrorists and Mr Fakhrizadeh bodyguards in which he was severely injured and rushed to hospital, where the doctors despite their efforts could not save him.
According to Western intelligence agencies Fakhrizadeh was working on a covert Iranian nuclear weapons programme.
Iran has always insisted that its nuclear programme is exclusively for peaceful purposes.
Fakhrizadeh's killing comes amid fresh concern about the increased amount of enriched uranium that the country is producing, ever since Iran started breaching its commitments under the terms of the 2015 Iran nuclear deal, the country has moved ahead rapidly, building stockpiles of low-enriched uranium and enriching to a purity above the level permitted under the deal, required to build nuclear weapons.
UNI XC ACL0422