Green-lighting assassinations of civilians

last updated 8 January 2015

The Americans and Israelis have turned to terrorism to oppose Iran, said Kurosh Shoja’i in the Mashhad, Iran, Khorasan News. The recent assassination of our nuclear scientist Mostafa Ahmadi Roshan shows that this evil coalition will stoop to any “wicked” means to wreak vengeance on the nation of Iran. The hit, in which an assassin on a motorcycle attached a magnetic bomb to Roshan’s car and then sped away, bears the hallmarks of Mossad, the spy agency of the “Zionist regime.” But such state-sponsored terrorism is only made possible through the support of the United States. In fact, it seems likely that this latest in a string of assassinations of our nuclear scientists was a direct response to “our country’s success in electronic warfare,” particularly our recent “downing of the U.S.’s ultramodern stealth drone.” Iran’s enemies, “humiliated,” are now resorting to cowardly attacks on our scientists.

We’ll make them regret it, said Mehdi Mohammadi in the Tehran Kayhan. The Americans and Zionists may think that they are setting back our peaceful nuclear research. But no matter what they try, they will “neither slow down nor stop” our nuclear programs. All they have achieved is to “throw themselves in the fire of revenge.” Plenty of Iranians “pray day and night for martyrdom” in the fight against the Great Satan. Until now, the Americans “have encountered few surprises.” We have arrested some of their spies—such as the CIA agent Amir Hekmati, sentenced to death this month—but little more. From now on, though, they should brace themselves for retaliation. Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei himself has said that “the Global Arrogance, led by America and Zionism,” will be punished for its crimes.

It’s obvious that the Americans are trying to undermine our upcoming parliamentary elections, said Abdollah Ganji in Javan. Of course, the assassination was partly an attempt to hamstring Iranian nuclear efforts—but only partly. The other goal was to “sow insecurity in Iranian society” ahead of the “most important political occasion” in our country. That’s why, to protect our people, we will have to raise our security level, said Hassan Hani Zadeh in a commentary for the Mehr News Agency. “Phrases like ‘democracy,’ ‘rule by the people,’ ‘holding free elections,’ and ‘respect for the rule of law’ are frivolous; they can’t create a safe environment for the nuclear scientists of our country.” At least until the March elections, Iran will have to “impose a regimen of stricter laws in order to combat American and Israeli terrorism.”