Israeli Assassinations of Scientists Won’t Stop Iran’s Nuclear Program, Raisi Says

At least six Iranian nuclear scientists have been assassinated since 2007. Tel Aviv has not formally confirmed its involvement in any of the killings. However, in 2020, an unnamed Israeli official told US media that the world should “thank Israel” for the killing of senior Iranian nuclear scientist Mohsen Fakhrizadeh.

The pursuit of peaceful nuclear energy is Iran’s right, and nothing, including the Israeli murders of Iranian nuclear scientists, will stop the Islamic Republic, President Ebrahim Raisi has indicated.

“The nuclear program is Iran’s right. No one can take it away from us,” Raisi said in a press conference on Monday marking his first year in office.

“Israeli threats did not work before and they won’t work now…The killings of nuclear scientists and our heroes were aimed at stopping [the nuclear program], but we did not do so. There is no threat or measure Israel can take that will stop our path, and they are aware that they are unable to confront us,” the president said.

Raisi also dismissed claims often made by Israel and its regional and US allies about Iran’s alleged nuclear weapons ambitions, reiterating that Tehran has no plans to pursue nukes.

“We have stated time and again that nuclear weapons have no place in our nuclear doctrine. The leader of the Islamic Revolution [Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei] has frequently announced that the acquisition of such armaments is religiously forbidden. We have also declared that these weapons have no place in our foreign policy,” he said.

Raisi warned Tel Aviv against any provocations, threatening fatal consequences for the “Zionist regime.” “Israel’s threats express its fear and we advise it not to start any aggression because it may not exist after that,” he said.

Iran has spent well over a decade accusing Israel of killing its nuclear scientists. The Jewish state has not directly confirmed its involvement, but anonymous officials have strongly hinted at Tel Aviv’s role. The killings are part of a decades-long, secretive intelligence war between Iran and Israel over the Islamic Republic’s nuclear energy program, with Tel Aviv accused of staging sabotage attacks against Iranian nuclear facilities. Last year, Israel set aside a special $1.5 billion budget to prepare for possible air and missile strikes targeting Iran’s nuclear program. Earlier this year, Israel and the US carried out joint exercises simulating such strikes.

Late last year, former Israeli Deputy National Security Advisor Chuck Freilich urged Tel Aviv to set aside any plans to attack Iran or its nuclear program, warning that the country could easily rebuild its nuclear facilities because it has already crossed the Rubicon of nuclear technology, and stressing that Israel would be “paralyzed” if even a fraction of Iran’s vast conventional missile arsenal was launched at Israeli cities.