Iranian Man Executed for Alleged Role in Assassination of Nuclear Scientist

Iran has executed an Iranian man accused of killing Iranian nuclear scientist, Masoud Ali Mohammadi. Mohammadi was killed in 2010 when a bomb attached to a motorcycle outside his Tehran home was detonated.

Majid Jamali Fashi was accused of being a spy for Israel, and was hung today for his part in killing Mohammadi. Mohammadi is one of several Iranian nuclear scientists to be killed in the last few years.

Anchor Lisa Mullins talks with Kasra Naji, of the BBC’s Persian service, about the case. According to Naji, Iranian television broadcast what it said was a confession made by Majid Jamali Fashi, in which he said he had been working for Israel.

Nothing is known about the circumstances under which the confession was made. Naji says no evidence has been made public for the conviction, other than the confession.

Read the Transcript
The text below is a phonetic transcript of a radio story broadcast by PRI’s THE WORLD. It has been created on deadline by a contractor for PRI. The transcript is included here to facilitate internet searches for audio content. Please report any transcribing errors to theworld@pri.org. This transcript may not be in its final form, and it may be updated. Please be aware that the authoritative record of material distributed by PRI’s THE WORLD is the program audio.

Lisa Mullins: A young Iranian man accused of spying for Israel was hanged today in Teheran. Majid Jamali Fashi had publicly confessed to plotting a bomb attack that killed an Iranian nuclear scientist two years ago. He was sentenced to death after a trial last August. Confessions though are often coerced by Iranian authorities. Teheran has accused Israel and the United States of assassinating several scientists in an effort to derail Iran’s nuclear program. Kasra Naji is with the BBC’s Persian TV service. He recounts the case against Fashi that was presented at the trial by the Iranian government.

Kasra Naji: According to the prosecutor he is 26 years old. He’s Iranian born in Western Iran. He is married and he has been in contact with Mossad agents in various neighboring countries to Iran, and he met several times in these countries and even in Thailand. And once he was taken also to Israel for training, to go and bomb this particular block of flats where this scientist lived. And he says he didn’t know who the man was until he heard from news that the man was actually a nuclear scientist.

Mullins: The man being Masoud Ali Mohammadi, who was killed in this particular blast. Now, the man who is being held responsible over this–who was executed–Majid Jamali Fashi, what was his profession and was there any evidence that was presented that would tie him to Israeli intelligence Mossad and all of these places where he supposedly met with Mossad agents?

Naji: The prosecutor is not quite clear as to what his profession was. But, the evidence is basically what we hear and what has been put out in public, at least in Iran, is based on his confessions. He’s been confessing to all these things. And we saw him on television. We don’t know under what circumstances he came off with those confessions. But, I watched it and it looked somewhat convincing. They could have some evidence that they haven’t made public, although, I grant you that doesn’t make sense. If they did have hard evidence they should have come up with it and it would have made the case much stronger against Israel and Israel’s alleged involvement in Iran and state terrorism in Iran.

Mullins: Is this is the first conviction and the first hanging or execution that has happened as a result of a conviction of an alleged spy?

Naji: As far as I know this is the first one to do with the killings of Iranian scientists involved in the country’s nuclear program. There were other people who were executed in the last year or two, who as it was said to be spies for Israel and Israeli Secret Service Mossad, but not directly to do with the nuclear program.

Mullins: Have the intelligence agencies in Israel or the United States or Britain, which Iran has also pointed the finger at, have they responded in any way? Have they denied any of the accusations?

Naji: Not the agencies, CIA or MI6, neither of the two. But the governments have rejected the idea of being involved in killing Iranian scientists. Both the United States and Britain have condemned the killings but not Israel. Interestingly, Israel has kept very quiet, no comment one way or another, whether they are involved or not involved.

Mullins: The BBC’s Persian Services Kasra Naji in London. Thank you.

Naji: Thank you.

Copyright ©2009 PRI’s THE WORLD. All rights reserved. No quotes from the materials contained herein may be used in any media without attribution to PRI’s THE WORLD. This transcript may not be reproduced, in whole or in part, without prior written permission. For further information, please email The World’s Permissions Coordinator at theworld@pri.org.