Dr. Roozbeh Vadi, a PhD graduate in Nuclear Engineering with a specialization in Reactor Engineering from Amirkabir University of Technology, has been executed on charges of collaborating with the Israeli intelligence and special operations agency (Mossad).
The death sentence of Roozbeh Vadi was carried out today (Wednesday, August 6). In its official statement, the Judiciary—without directly mentioning Vadi’s professional position—announced that he had worked in one of the country’s “important and sensitive organizations” and was “fully aware of the nature of the Mossad, a terrorist-espionage agency, and had deliberately cooperated with Israel.”
A review of his academic and professional background reveals that Roozbeh Vadi was affiliated with the Nuclear Science and Technology Research Institute, which operates under the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran. In 2011, he co-authored a scientific paper with two prominent nuclear experts, Abdolhamid Minouchahr and Ahmad Zolfaghari—both of whom were later killed during the 12-day war.
The case of Dr. Roozbeh Vadi is a stark reminder of the bitter reality that even the highest levels of expertise and service in the Islamic Republic offer no guarantee of personal or professional security for scientific elites. At a time when the space for independent academic work is increasingly restricted, emigration is no longer a choice—it is a necessity for survival and the continuation of one’s scientific journey
