Why it matters:
The killings of Ali Bokaei Karimi, Mansour Asgari, and Saeed Borji come just days after a major Israeli military operation targeted Iranian territory, including nuclear research centers and residential areas. These coordinated attacks, part of what Iran calls “terrorist attacks”, are significantly escalating regional tensions and deepening concerns over the targeting of scientific and military elites.
What they're saying:
Iranian media outlets, citing official sources, reported that the three nuclear scientists were killed in separate targeted strikes. This follows the earlier martyrdom of prominent figures such as Dr. Mohammad Mehdi Tehranchi, Dr. Fereydoon Abbasi, and Dr. Abdolhamid Minoucher, all of whom had critical roles in Iran’s nuclear research and education sectors.
What he’s saying:
Iran’s Leader, Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei, condemned the assassinations in a televised speech, declaring that “the blood of these martyrs will not go unanswered,” and promising a crushing response. “The Zionist regime has committed a grave mistake,” he warned, “and the consequences will ruin them.”
Key points:
- This follows a broader Israeli assault that killed senior IRGC commanders and nuclear researchers in Tehran.
- Iran has responded with a large-scale retaliatory strike, dubbed “True Promise III,” targeting dozens of Israeli military sites.
Go deeper:
The most recent assassinations mirror a pattern seen over the past decade in which Iranian nuclear scientists have been systematically targeted, often through covert or drone-based operations attributed to Israeli intelligence. The earlier assassination of Mohsen Fakhrizadeh in 2020, believed to be orchestrated by Mossad, triggered international condemnation and raised fears of wider regional war.
ahmad shirzadian
