Iranian Defense Minister General Amir Hatami: Mohsen Fakhrizadeh Had Made Great Strides In Development Of Coronavirus Vaccine; He Was Also Involved In Developing Air Defense Lasers, Non-Radar Detection Technology

Iranian Defense Minister General Amir Hatami said in a November 27, 2020 interview on IRINN TV (Iran) that senior Iranian nuclear scientist Mohsen Fakhrizadeh, who had been assassinated on the previous Friday, had been also involved in other scientific projects. He said that Fakhrizadeh had led the organization that developed Iran's coronavirus test kits, and that he had worked on the development of a coronavirus vaccine, of air defense lasers, and on non-radar aerial detection technologies.

General Amir Hatami: "For a long time, [Mohsen Fakhrizadeh] had been the head of the Organization for Defensive Research and Innovation. We are familiar with his significant achievements in the field of defense, but because his [other] projects were mostly innovations used to surprise the enemy, and we avoid being surprised ourselves, these [projects] were less prominent in headlines and the discourse. He did extensive work in the field of [air] defense lasers and in the field of non-radar detection of aerial targets.

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"The organization he led had presented Iran's first coronavirus test kit, and by the grace of God, it is still one of the best kits out there. [Fakhrizadeh's kit] detects both influenza and coronavirus. He also made great strides in developing a coronavirus vaccine. Allah willing, the impact of these steps will soon be presented to the public."