Assassinated? Iranian scientist mysteriously dies of ‘food poisoning’

Aerospace engineer Dr. Ayoob Entezari was said to have died of food poisoning by various Farsi-language outlets, but commentators and analysts cast doubt on that version of events.

By Lauren Marcus, World Israel News

A prominent scientist who developed drones and missiles for the Iranian military mysteriously died this week, sparking speculation that he may have been assassinated by either the Mossad or the Iranian government.

Aerospace engineer Dr. Ayoob Entezari, who worked at the Yazd military technology base in central Iran, was said to have died of food poisoning by various Farsi-language outlets, but commentators and analysts cast doubt on that version of events.

According to security blogger Abu Ali Express, Entezari ate dinner at a relative’s house. Within a few hours of the meal, he suffered a “severe internal hemorrhage” and died after being taken to a hospital.

While food poisoning can be deadly, it typically does not cause hemorrhages or death within several hours of the meal. However, Entezari’s symptoms and the speed of his death are consistent with acute poisoning.

Entezari’s death comes just two weeks after the slaying of Col. Hassan Sayyad Khodaei, a top IRGC commander who served in a unit that focused on plots outside of Iran, and who reportedly planned terror attacks on Jews and Israelis.

Khodaie was shot by two assailants on a motorcycle outside of his Tehran home, and the Iranian government blamed “Zionists” for the assassination.

The Iranian government reportedly believes that inside information from Iranian sources passed along to Israel was a major factor, and is now embarking on a campaign to root out possible spies.

Notably, senior IRGC officer Col. Ali Esmailzadeh mysteriously died shortly after Khodaie’s assassination, in what Farsi media called “an incident at his home.”

The Iranian authorities said that Esmailzadeh jumped off the roof of his residence because he was depressed about a new separation from his wife, but some believe that he was assassinated by the government due to concerns he was feeding information to Israeli intelligence agencies.