How Iran’s top nuclear scientist was killed with remote-controlled machine gun

Iranian media says Mohsen Fakhrizadeh was shot by weapon mounted on car that then exploded

A billboard in honour of slain nuclear scientist Mohsen Fakhrizadeh in Tehran
A billboard in honour of slain nuclear scientist Mohsen Fakhrizadeh in Tehran
(Image credit: AFP via Getty Images)

A remote-controlled machine gun was used to kill Iran’s leading nuclear scientist in an assassination that Tehran has blamed on Israel, according to latest reports.

Mohsen Fakhrizadeh - dubbed the “father” of Iran’s bomb programme - was travelling with his wife in a bullet-proof car, accompanied by a convoy of armoured vehicles, when they came under gunfire on Friday in the city of Absard, 50 miles east of the capital.

Subscribe to The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE
https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/flexiimages/jacafc5zvs1692883516.jpg

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Sign up
To continue reading this article...
Continue reading this article and get limited website access each month.
Get unlimited website access, exclusive newsletters plus much more.
Cancel or pause at any time.
Already a subscriber to The Week?
Not sure which email you used for your subscription? Contact us

Kari Wilkin is The Week Digital’s global managing editor. She joined the UK site as production editor in 2017, after moving across from The Week magazine. Her career as a journalist began as a sub-editor at newspapers including The Sun, Metro, the Daily Star and News of the World, followed by stints at Elle and Asda Magazine. She also helped to launch the UK edition of Women’s Health magazine, as chief sub-editor with a sideline in writing; has penned travel and lifestyle articles for titles including The Telegraph and The Sun; and is a contributor on “The Week Unwrapped” podcast.