Denies Reports Of Killing Of Nuclear Scientists By Israeli Intel, Iran Says Already Has Detailed Reports

Iranian officials attend the funeral of nuclear scientist Mohsen Fakhrizadeh. (Wikimedia Commons/Fars News Agency)

JAKARTA - Iran has denied reports issued by the US media regarding the 2020 assassination of top Iranian nuclear scientist Mohsen Fakh.

Fakhrizadeh, also known as the 'Father of Iran's Nuclear Programme', was killed outside Tehran on November 26, 2020. Various analyzes and controversies arise regarding this murder.

Recently, The New York Times said the Israeli intelligence agency, Mossad, was behind this assassination, using a sniper rifle that had been modified with artificial intelligence (AI) technology, controlled remotely, in its report last Saturday.

"It deserves attention only as a newspaper report," said Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Saeed Khatibzadeh, citing Iran International Sunday, September 19.

"Iran's security and intelligence services have detailed reports on the incident including, all those who have participated, in the operation," Khatibzadeh said.

The New York Times said its report was based on interviews with American, Israeli and Iranian officials, "including two intelligence officials who knew the details of planning and executing the operation."

Meanwhile, two days after Fakhrizadeh's assassination, Iran's Revolutionary Guards-affiliated Fars News published a report offering details of the events, saying there were no killers at the scene and remote-controlled automatic weapons had opened fire on the convoy.

Previously reported, the mystery of the death of military nuclear expert and 'Father of the Weapons Program' Mohsen Fakhrizadeh in November 2020, after the United States (US) media last Saturday reported that Mossad, Israel's intelligence agency, was behind the death.

The military funeral of Iranian nuclear scientist Mohsen Fakhrizadeh. (Wikimedia Commons/Fars News Agency)

The report also said the Mossad used sniper rifles that were operated with artificial intelligence (AI) technology, as well as remotely controlled.

"Iranian agents working for Mossad have parked a blue Nissan Zamyad pickup truck on the side of the road that connects Absard City to the main highway. It is at a slight elevation with a view of approaching vehicles. Hidden under the tarpaulin and diverting construction material in the tailgate is 7.62 mm sniper machine gun," the report quoted The Jerusalem Post September 18 as saying.

"At around 1pm, the attack team received a signal that Mr Fakhrizadeh, his wife, and a team of armed guards in escort cars were leaving for Absard, where many of Iran's elite have second homes and holiday villas," the report continued.

Further, the report details how the snipers who finished off Fakhrizadeh did so remotely, from Israel, more than 1,600 kilometers away, because the assassination squad had long since left Iran.

The rifle used is a special model of the Belgian-made FN MAG machine gun mounted on advanced robotic equipment. The rifle was smuggled into the country in small pieces over several months, because put together, all of its components would weigh about a full ton.

One new detail in the report was that the explosives used to destroy evidence of long-range weapons had partially failed, leaving enough weapons intact for Iran to know what had happened.