The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) has publicly identified nine Iranian nuclear scientists killed in a series of precision strikes conducted early Friday, as part of its military operation targeting Iran's nuclear program.
According to the IDF statement, the targeted scientists were pivotal figures in Iran's efforts to acquire nuclear weapons capability, possessing decades of specialized expertise and knowledge in various fields related to nuclear development.
"All the scientists and experts who were eliminated were significant sources of knowledge in the Iranian nuclear project, and had decades of cumulative experience in the development of nuclear weapons," the IDF stated.
The Nine Scientists Identified
The IDF named the following experts eliminated in the operation:
Fereydoon Abbasi – expert in nuclear engineering
Mohammad Mehdi Tehranchi – expert in physics
Akbar Motalebi Zadeh – expert in chemical engineering
Saeed Barji – expert in materials engineering
Amir Hassan Fakhahi – expert in physics
Abd al-Hamid Minoushehr – expert in reactor physics
Mansour Asgari – expert in physics
Ahmad Reza Zolfaghari Daryani – expert in nuclear engineering
Ali Bakhouei Katirimi – expert in mechanics
Coordinated Intelligence Operation
The IDF revealed that the scientists were killed in simultaneous airstrikes across Tehran during the same wave of attacks that eliminated dozens of Iranian military commanders, including six senior officials.
According to military sources, the operation was the culmination of years of classified intelligence work that intensified over the past year. The IDF stated that "dozens of intelligence researchers worked on a secret project aimed at tracking key nuclear scientists in Iran over the course of several years."
Many of the nine scientists were reportedly considered successors to Mohsen Fakhrizadeh, widely regarded as the architect of Iran's nuclear program, who was killed in an operation attributed to Israel in 2020.
This development marks a significant escalation in the ongoing tensions between Israel and Iran, with potential implications for regional stability and international diplomatic efforts regarding Iran's nuclear program.
The situation continues to evolve as international observers and regional powers monitor the aftermath of these strikes and potential responses from Iran.
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