ONE IRANIAN NUCLEAR SCIENTIST WAS killed and a second wounded in separate, but similar, bomb attacks in Tehran.

The BBC reports that both men were targeted by people on motorcycles, who attached bombs to the windows of the victims’ cars as they drove to work.

The wives of both men were also injured in the attacks.

At a press conference following the explosions, Iranian President Ahmadinejad blamed “Israel and Western governments”, and said the assassination would not deter Iran from pursuing its nuclear programmes.

The man who died has been named as Majid Shahriari, and local media reports that he was a colleague of a professor who was killed in January in a similar attack. Iran had accused the US of involvement in that man’s death, which the US denied.

Bloomberg reports that Shahriari was involved in Iran’s nuclear programme, and also taught at Shahid Beheshti University in Tehran.

Iranian media reports that the injured man has been named as Dr Fereydoon Abbasi, who did nuclear research at the defence ministry, according to Al Jazeera. Abbasi was described as being one of few people capable of separating isotopes.

Iranian authorities are investigating both blasts.