Iran leader lands in Cuba flashing victory sign

AFP - Iran's President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad landed in Cuba on Wednesday as the killing of a nuclear scientist in a Tehran car bombing led the Islamic state to blame Israel and the United States for the death.

The scientist's killing worsened already high tensions with the West over Iran's suspect nuclear program but a defiant Ahmadinejad flashed the victory sign several times after landing in Havana.

The Iranian leader was greeted by nine girls in traditional Iranian attire as he stepped off the plane that flew him in from Nicaragua on the third leg of his Latin American tour.

Ahmadinejad, who was welcomed by Cuban Vice President Estaban Lazo, did not speak to the press.

His arrival came a few hours after Mostafa Ahmadi Roshan, a 32-year-old nuclear scientist, was killed. Iran pointed the finger at Israel and the United States, which have vowed to prevent Iran from building a nuclear weapon.

Iran's Vice President Mohammad Reza Rahimi told state television the killing, which occurred in front of a university campus in east Tehran, would not stop Iran making "progress" in its nuclear activities.

Iranian officials said the assassination method -- two men on a motorbike attaching a magnetic bomb to the target's vehicle -- was similar to that used in the killings of three other of its scientists over the past two years.

Washington denied any involvement in the killing.

"The United States had absolutely nothing to do with this. We strongly condemn all acts of violence, including acts of violence like this," said National Security Council spokesman Tommy Vietor.

The killing following Monday's confirmation by the UN nuclear watchdog IAEA that Iran had begun enriching uranium in a new, underground bunker, a development that the United States, Britain, France and Germany denounced as an unacceptable violation of UN Security Council resolutions.

Faced with growing pressure from the West over his country's nuclear ambitions, Ahmadinejad on Monday began a regional tour to seek support from four Latin American countries hostile to Washington.

During a visit lasting less than 24 hours, Ahmadinejad was scheduled to meet President Raul Castro and deliver a speech at Havana University, according to the official program.

Iranian media have suggested that he could also meet ailing Fidel Castro, the 85-year-old former president and revolutionary icon, but there was no confirmation from the Cuban side.

Cuba, located a mere 150 kilometers (90 miles) from the United States, defends Iran's right to develop nuclear energy for civilian purposes.

Tehran insists that its nuclear program has no military purposes, rejecting Western charges that its uranium enrichment program masks a bid to covertly build a nuclear bomb.

Israel, Tehran's sworn enemy, has threatened to launch air strikes on Iran's nuclear facilities. The United States has said "all options are on the table" in terms of dealing with Iran -- including military action.

Tehran has meanwhile threatened to close the strategic Strait of Hormuz at the entrance to the Gulf if it is attacked. Twenty percent of the world's oil flows through the strait.

The slain Iranian scientist was a deputy director at Iran's Natanz uranium enrichment facility, according to the website of Sharif University, from where he graduated a decade ago.

The Iranian vice president, in charge while Ahmadinejad is on his Latin America tour, said: "They (Israel and the United States) should know that Iranian scientists are more determined than ever in striding towards Iran's progress."

In Nicaragua, Ahmadinejad secured the backing Daniel Ortega, who insisted that "countries have the right to develop nuclear energy." He earlier enlisted the support of President Hugo Chavez during a stop in Venezuela.

The Iranian leader was to wrap up his tour in Ecuador.