Iran sent a letter to the Secretary-General of the United Nations, António Guterres and the UN Security Council, in which it said that there are serious indications of Israeli responsibility in the assassination of nuclear scientist Mohsen Fakhrizadeh.
Tehran has warned of what it described as reckless actions by the United States and Israel, especially during the remainder of the presidency of US President Donald Trump.
She said she reserves her rights to take all necessary measures to defend her people and secure their interests.
The Iranian delegate had earlier asked, through his Twitter account, the Secretary-General of the United Nations and the Security Council to condemn the assassination of the Iranian scientist.
Earlier in the Iranian message, Farhan Haq, a spokesman for the Secretary-General of the United Nations, said, "We have learned of the reports that talk about the assassination of an Iranian nuclear scientist near Tehran," and that Secretary-General Antonio Guterres calls for restraint and avoiding any actions that may lead to escalating tension in the region after the assassination.
For its part, the Iranian Foreign Ministry "strongly" condemned the assassination, and Foreign Minister Muhammad Javad Zarif said that there are serious indications of an Israeli role in the killing of the Iranian nuclear scientist.
Zarif called on European countries to put an end to what he described as the policy of double standards, and to condemn this crime, which is considered state terrorism.
Netanyahu had shown a picture of Fakhrizadeh as the founder and head of Iran's secret nuclear project (Reuters)
The decision to take revenge
On the other hand, the commander of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard, Hossein Salami, said that he made a decision to take severe revenge on those who planned, executed and supported the assassination of Mohsen Fakhri Zadeh, adding, "We have the right to take revenge and respond to the assassination of Fakhri Zadeh in any place or area."
Salami pointed out that "the criminal hand of America, the Zionist entity and the hypocrites is clearly visible in the assassination of Fakhrizadeh."
As for the advisor to the Iranian guide for international affairs, he said that revenge will be made against those directly and indirectly involved in the assassination of the nuclear scientist.
Meanwhile, The New York Times quoted an American official and two intelligence sources that Israel was behind the assassination of Mohsen Fakhri Zadeh, and said that the assassination could complicate the efforts of US President-elect Joe Biden to revive the Iranian nuclear deal.
The American newspaper added that the Iranian scientist who was assassinated was long ago a target of the Israeli Mossad, and said it was not immediately clear if the United States had prior knowledge of the assassination.
Details of the attack
In a statement, the Iranian Ministry of Defense announced the death of Fakhri Zadeh of his wounds shortly after he was targeted by "terrorist elements", explaining that he was "seriously injured" after his car was targeted by attackers who clashed with bullets with his companions, and "died" in the hospital despite attempts to resuscitate him.
The operation took place in the city of Absard in Damavand province, east of Tehran, and an official TV correspondent from the scene reported that a small truck carrying explosives exploded in front of the scientist's car, and gunmen opened fire on it.
Television pictures showed a black car beside the road, with bullets piercing its windshield.
There were blood marks on the asphalt.
The scientist Mohsen Fakhrizadeh is described as the head of the "Iranian nuclear program" that the United States and Israel are fighting, which seek to prevent Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons, while Tehran asserts that it is only seeking to obtain nuclear energy and not weapons.