World's deadliest profession? Iranian nuclear scientist

[CountDeMoney]

Magnetic bomb kills nuclear scientist in Iran; Israel accused
'Western powers and their allies appear to be relying on covert war tactics to try to delay and degrade Iran's nuclear advancement,' security expert says

Two assailants on a motorcycle attached a magnetic bomb to the car of an Iranian university professor working at a key nuclear facility, killing him and wounding two people on Wednesday, a semiofficial news agency reported.

The attack in Tehran bore a strong resemblance to earlier killings of scientists working on the Iranian nuclear program. It is certain to reinforce authorities' claims of widening clandestine operations by Western powers and allies to try to cripple nuclear advancements.

The bomb killed Mostafa Ahmadi Roshan, a chemistry expert and a director of the Natanz uranium enrichment facility in central Iran, the semiofficial Fars news agency reported. Natanz is Iran's main enrichment site, but officials claimed earlier this week that they are expanding some operations to an underground site south of Tehran with more advanced equipment.

Witnesses told Reuters they had seen two people on the motorcycle a bomb to the car.

"The bomb was a magnetic one and the same as the ones previously used for the assassination of the scientists, and is the work of the (Israelis)," Fars quoted Tehran's Deputy Governor Safarali Baratloo as saying. "The terrorist attack is a conspiracy to undermine the (March 2) parliamentary elections."

Iran's atomic energy organization said it would issue a statement later Wednesday.

The U.S. and its allies are pressuring Iran to halt uranium enrichment, a key element of the nuclear program that the West suspects is aimed at producing atomic weapons. Uranium enriched to low levels can be used as nuclear fuel but at higher levels, it can be used as material for a nuclear warhead. Iran denies it is trying to make nuclear weapons.

The killing of Roshan was similar to previous assassinations of Iranian nuclear scientists that Tehran has blamed on Israel's Mossad and the United States. Both countries have denied the accusations.

'Critical year'
But Israeli officials have hinted about covert campaigns against Iran without directly admitting involvement.

On Tuesday, Israeli military chief Lt. Gen Benny Gantz was quoted as telling a parliamentary panel that 2012 would be a "critical year" for Iran — in part because of "things that happen to it unnaturally."

Roshan, 32, was inside the Iranian-assembled Peugeot 405 car together with two others when the bomb exploded in north Tehran, Fars reported.

Roshan was a graduate of the prestigious Sharif University of Technology in Tehran.

Roshan was involved in building polymeric layers for gas separation, which is the use of various membranes to isolate gases. He was also deputy director of Natanz uranium enrichment plant, in central Iran, for commercial affairs. According to conservative news website, mashreghnews.ir, Roshan was in charge of purchasing and supplying equipment for Natanz enrichment facility.

A similar bomb explosion on Jan. 12, 2010, killed Tehran University professor Masoud Ali Mohammadi, a senior physics professor. He was killed when a bomb-rigged motorcycle exploded near his car as he was about to leave for work.

In November 2010, a pair of back-to-back bomb attacks in different parts of the capital killed one nuclear scientist and wounded another.

The slain scientist, Majid Shahriari, was a member of the nuclear engineering faculty at Shahid Beheshti University in Tehran and cooperated with the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran. The wounded scientist, Fereidoun Abbasi, was almost immediately appointed head of Iran's atomic agency.

And in July 2011, motorcycle-riding gunmen killed Darioush Rezaeinejad, an electronics student. Other reports identified him as a scientist involved in suspected Iranian attempts to make nuclear weapons.

Rezaeinejad allegedly participated in developing high-voltage switches, a key component in setting off the explosions needed to trigger a nuclear warhead.

The United States and other countries say Iran is trying to develop nuclear weapons technology. Iran denies the allegations, saying that its program is intended for peaceful purposes.

The latest blast is certain to bring fresh charges by Iran that the U.S. and allies are waging a clandestine campaign of bloodshed and sabotage in attempts to set back Iran's nuclear efforts.

"Instead of actually fighting a conventional war, Western powers and their allies appear to be relying on covert war tactics to try to delay and degrade Iran's nuclear advancement," said Theodore Karasik, a security expert at the Dubai-based Institute for Near East and Gulf Military Analysis.

He said the use of magnetic bombs bears the hallmarks of covert operations.

"It's a very common way to eliminate someone," he added. "It's clean, easy and efficient."

Meanwhile, new U.S. sanctions against Iran have also started to bite. The rial currency lost 20 percent of its value against the dollar in the past week and Iran has threatened to shut the Strait of Hormuz, through which 40 percent of trade oil passes.

[11B4V]

Mossad 

[grumbler]

Witnesses told Reuters they had seen two people on the motorcycle a bomb to the car.

Reuters cannot into grammar.

Seedy cannot into cite.

[Viking]

The slain scientist, Majid Shahriari, was a member of the nuclear engineering faculty at Shahid Beheshti University in Tehran and cooperated with the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran. The wounded scientist, Fereidoun Abbasi, was almost immediately appointed head of Iran's atomic agency.

This suggest they might be scraping the bottom of the barrel CV wise.

[Cecil]

Mossad 

I see them rollin´, they hating. 

[Razgovory]

Excellent news.

[derspiess]

Makes me wonder why Iran isn't doing more to protect these guys. 

[Razgovory]

Makes me wonder why Iran isn't doing more to protect these guys.

The director guy I can see, but it's harder to protect a University professor.  They are supposed to be accessible.  It's also clear from the assassinations and sabotage that the project is severely compromised.  There is at least one agent on the inside, probably more.

[Sheilbh]

Makes me wonder why Iran isn't doing more to protect these guys.

Goldberg asked that and other questions on this, they're worth thinking on:

Another Iranian Nuclear Scientist Assassinated, and What It Means
By Jeffrey Goldberg

Jan 11 2012, 8:57 AM ET

It's groundhog day in Tehran. Another nuclear scientist, this one identified as Mostafa Ahmadi Roshan, who worked at the Natanz uranium enrichment facility, was killed when an explosive was attached to his car. Several questions arise:

1) Why aren't the Iranians attempting to kill Israeli defense officials? The answer, I believe, has more to do with Iranian technical limitations: Since the Iranian regime has no compunction about killing Israeli civilians (through its proxies Hezbollah and Hamas), I doubt it has reservations about attacking military or intelligence officials. Perhaps one thing holding back Iran, though, is fear that attacks on Israeli officials (or, even more consequentially, American officials -- though of course, Iran is already killing American soldiers in Afghanistan) would prompt an immediate Israeli strike on Natanz, before the regime is able to move its centrifuges to its underground facility at Fordow.

2) Does Israel, or whoever is assassinating Iranian scientists, believe that these killings will actually slow-down Iranian nuclear development? In other words, do the people behind the assassinations believe that Iranian nuclear knowledge is so concentrated in the minds of a few scientists that a limited series of assassinations can cripple the program? This doesn't seem likely, obviously.

3) Is the goal of the assassination program to convince Iranians nuclear scientists to seek other lines of work? This is also plausible, but not likely to work: I think the regime would take the Tony Soprano approach -- you can't resign from the Mafia -- and tell frightened scientists to get back to work, or suffer the consequences, or have their families suffer the consequences.

4) Why is Iran so incompetent at protecting its nuclear scientists? This is a perplexing issue.

5) Why is the Mossad, assuming this is the Mossad, so deft at assassinating people in Tehran? It's a very hard target, Iran, and the Mossad has on more than one occasion bungled assassinations in terrible ways (the attempted killing of the Hamas leader Khaled Meshaal in Jordan is only one case in point).

6) Another question, or something closer to an observation: If I were a member of the Iranian regime (and I'm not), I would take this assassination program to mean that the West is entirely uninterested in any form of negotiation (not that I, the regime official, has ever been much interested in dialogue with the West) and that I should double-down and cross the nuclear threshold as fast as humanly possible. Once I do that, I'm North Korea, or Pakistan: An untouchable country.

[frunk]

I think the Iranian regime has been doubling down on nuclear weapon development for quite some time.  The assassinations are because they are pushing so hard.

[Malthus]

My take on Goldberg's points is:

(1) there is no percentage in Iran assassinating random Israeli officials. This would not deter Israel from attempting to thwart Iran (assuming it is them doing the assassinating).

(2) why doubt that killing the scientists (and other key figures) is slowing down the program? Iran must have a relatively limited number of people with the science skills required, particularly given the regime's unfriendliness to its secular, educated class - many of whom fled after the revolution. I dunno why it is "obvious" that the killings can't slow down the Iranian program.

Obviously nothing short of actually defeating Iran in battle can stop such a program - all that can be done is slow it, or increase costs.

(3) I agree any scientists under the control of Iran are going to have little choice. It would certainly limit the ability to recruit those from the diaspora considering return to Iran - as noted above, large numbers of the scientific community of Iran fled abroad (my dad is friends with several) but might be tempted back with offers of money, perks etc. Obviously less likely if they face assassination.

(4) Dunno. Good question.

(5) There is still time for whoever to bungle. The rep of the Mossad tends to vary between super-competent, when they do something well, to super-incompetent when they screw up.

(6) Iran would do that anyway, assassinations or no.

[Maximus]

Goldberg seems to be heading for the conclusion that someone within Iran is performing these assassinations for internal consumption.

[Admiral Yi]

Disagree with his #6.  The Middle East, of all places in the world, is familiar with the concept of increasing negotiating leverage.

[Sheilbh]

Goldberg seems to be heading for the conclusion that someone within Iran is performing these assassinations for internal consumption.

I think there's the suggestion that it's not the Israelis but possibly the Americans?

[Iormlund]

Point number six is downright absurd. Witnessing the contrast between the fates of our Dear Leader and Saddam Hussein was more than enough encouragement for an Iranian nuclear program.