Tehran: Iran has made arrests over a
scientist's assassination last week blamed on Israel and the
US, parliament speaker Ali Larijani said on Monday, vowing his
country would avenge the death using "non-terrorist" tactics.
He did not specify how many people were arrested or when
the arrests were made, or give any details on the suspects'
identities or nationalities.
"We have discovered some clues and some arrests have been
made. Investigations are ongoing," Larijani told Iran's
Arabic-language broadcaster al-Alam.
Various Iranian officials have blamed Israel and the
United States for the January 11 killing of Mostafa Ahmadi
Roshan, a 32-year-old deputy director of Iran's main uranium
enrichment plant.
Ahmadi Roshan died along with his driver after assassins
on a motorbike fixed a magnetic bomb to his car.
It was the fifth such attack targeting Iran's scientists
in the past two years. Four other scientists -- three of them
involved in Iran's nuclear programme -- died in the attacks,
while one managed to escape.
Iranian military commanders have said they are looking at
"punishing" those responsible.
But Larijani said Iran would not resort to terrorism to
take its revenge.
"We will not hesitate in punishing the Zionist regime
(Israel) so that it realises such actions have clear
responses. There will definitely be a response but our action
will be of a non-terrorist nature," he said.
PTI
First Published: Monday, January 16, 2012, 21:38