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Top Iranian Nuclear Scientist Resumes Work

(Wall Street Journal) Jay Solomon - Mohsen Fakhrizadeh, the Iranian scientist considered Tehran's atomic-weapons guru until he was sidelined several years ago, is back at work, according to UN investigators. A senior officer in the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, he oversaw Iran's research into the construction and detonation of a nuclear warhead, Western officials say. The International Atomic Energy Agency believes Fakhrizadeh has opened a research facility, the Organization of Defensive Innovation and Research (SPND), in the Tehran suburb of Mojdeh, involved in studies relevant to developing nuclear weapons. A number of Fakhrizadeh's closest colleagues have risen up the ranks of the Iranian bureaucracy in recent months, placing them in positions to influence the future of Iran's nuclear program. Among them is Fereydoun Abbasi-Davani, who heads the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran and is one of the country's vice presidents. Last month, Abbasi-Davani said Iran now has the technology to move quickly toward producing weapons-grade uranium. Such fuel can be used to build the core of an atomic weapon. Israel is concerned that Fakhrizadeh's warhead research coincides with the two other planks of a nuclear-arms program: missile systems and production of highly enriched uranium. "They are moving up all three elements of their nuclear program to the starting line," a senior Israeli official said.
2012-08-30 00:00:00
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