Iran parliament seeks end of IAEA inspections after scientist's killing

Iran's parliament has called for a halt to the UN nuclear agency's inspections of the country's nuclear installations following the assassination of a top nuclear scientist Mohsen Fakhrizadeh on Friday. 

"With the consent of the MPs, two urgent strategic action plans were adopted to lift the sanctions in order to return to the era of the nuclear energy boom and to stop the surveillance of the IAEA spies," Iranian parliamentarian Nasrollah Pejmanfar tweeted. 

The statement signed by all lawmakers said, "the hand of the murderous Zionist [Israel] regime" can be clearly seen in the assassination of Fakhrizadeh, who was killed on Friday in a car bomb and gun attack against his own vehicle outside Tehran, Al Jazeera reported.

The lawmakers called for an "immediate and punitive response" to foreign acts of aggression, the best of which would be to "revive the brilliant nuclear industry of our country," the statement said. 

Iran enriched uranium 12 times over deal limit

Earlier in November, International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) said that Iran's stockpile of enriched uranium crossed 12 times the limit set down in a 2015 deal with world powers.

The IAEA said, "Iran's total enriched uranium stockpile... was 2442.9 kg."

The nuclear deal signed in 2015 with the United States, Germany, France, Britain, China, and Russia, known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, or JCPOA, allows Iran only to keep a stockpile of 202.8 kilogrammes.

The IAEA reported that Iran has also been continuing to enrich uranium to a purity of up to 4.5 percent, higher than the 3.67 percent allowed under the deal.

READ MORE: Iran continues to expand stockpile of enriched uranium: IAEA

Israel behind murder?

Iran's President Hassan Rouhani has accused arch-foe Israel of acting as a US "mercenary" and killing Fakhrizadeh.

Israel has declined to comment on the death of Fakhrizadeh.

Rouhani has blamed the killing on "the wicked hands of the global arrogance, with the usurper Zionist regime as the mercenary".

Iran generally uses the term "global arrogance" to refer to the United States.

The New York Times has reported an American official and two other intelligence officials confirmed Israel was behind the attack, without giving further details.

Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has called for the perpetrators to be punished and urged that Fakhrizadeh's "scientific and technical efforts" be continued.

UK concerned over Iran situation

Meanwhile, British Foreign Minister Dominic Raab said on Sunday he was concerned about the situation in Iran and the wider region after the killing of Fakhrizadeh.

"We are concerned about the situation in Iran and the wider region we do want to see de-escalation of tensions," Raab told Sky News.

"We're still waiting to see the full facts to address the full facts of what's happened in Iran but I would say that we stick to the rule of international humanitarian law which is very clear against targeting civilians."

READ MORE: If the Iran nuclear deal can be saved, there is no time left to waste