Hosseinian: If I Were in Power, I Would Bury Salehi Inside the Arak Reactor

While some members of parliament dismissed Rouhollah Hosseinian's threat to 'bury' Ali Akbar Salehi and Mohammad Javad Zarif in the Arak nuclear reactor and 'pour' cement over them as a joke, Mr. Hosseinian emphasized on Tuesday that this threat was 'completely serious.' According to reports, Rouhollah Hosseinian, a member of the Front of Steadfastness, told Ali Akbar Salehi, head of the Atomic Energy Organization, during a parliamentary session on Sunday that if the Vienna nuclear agreement comes to fruition, 'I will bury you in the Arak reactor and pour cement on you.' Majid Ansari, the parliamentary deputy to the president, also confirmed that the death threat in parliament included Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif. Hamid Rasai, another member of the Front of Steadfastness, described Mr. Hosseinian's remarks as a 'joke' on his website and accused Mr. Salehi of 'playing the victim from the podium of parliament.' Nevertheless, according to ISNA news agency, Mr. Hosseinian stated on Tuesday, October 21, 'I have no remorse for my words directed at Salehi, and these remarks were completely serious.' He also stated in a press release that after the Lausanne nuclear agreement, he told Ali Akbar Salehi that he had 'destroyed the heavy water plant in Arak, which was a producer of plutonium,' leading Israel to 'threaten Iran with nuclear bombardment every minute.' Mr. Hosseinian emphasized that at that time he told both Mohammad Javad Zarif and Ali Akbar Salehi that if the U.S. or Israel attacked Iran due to the Vienna nuclear agreement, 'the people will arrest you and you will be tried, and if I were in power, I would condemn Mr. Salehi to take the cement that has been poured into the heart of the Arak reactor, take it out, and inject it around himself inside the reactor.' This member of parliament also confirmed that he repeated this threat during the public session of parliament on Sunday in the presence of Ahmad Amirabadi, a representative from Qom. According to Mehr news agency, he stressed that the 'devout nation' and the builders of the Arak reactor 'consider this punishment commensurate with the crime.' This member of parliament also stated that if the parliament 'passes the nuclear agreement plan a hundred more times,' he will not accept it because, according to him, it contradicts 'the constitution and national interests.' Mr. Hosseinian's threat against the foreign minister and the head of the Atomic Energy Organization has received significant media coverage both in Iran and abroad. Meanwhile, on Tuesday, Iranian media reported that Rouhollah Hosseinian was hospitalized due to a 'heart condition' following the events of Sunday, and Ali Akbar Salehi visited him. Mr. Hosseinian commented on this, saying, 'Of course, Salehi thought my heart condition was due to my confrontation with him; that's why he came to visit me. However, my main issue was that I hadn't taken my heart medication for two days.' He refrained from disclosing details of his conversation with Mr. Salehi in the hospital, stating that 'it was a private meeting and should not be published everywhere.' Ali Akbar Salehi also commented on Tuesday regarding Rouhollah Hosseinian's threat, saying, 'The nature of political discussions is such that individuals in parliament sometimes speak harshly and sometimes calmly.'