KUALA LUMPUR: The family of Dr Fadi Albatsh, gunned down in Setapak, has accused Israeli national intelligence agency Mossad of murdering him.
Gaza-based Palestinian news site Safa said family members, in a statement, said Mossad had carried out the attack.
“We accuse the Israeli Mossad for the assassination of our son, the energy researcher. Fadi was meant to fly on Sunday to Turkey, to chair an international conference on energy,” the statement added.
Senior Islamic jihad leader Khaled al-Batash had also accused Mossad of being responsible for the assassination.
In an interview with pan-Arab television network Al-Miyadin, Khaled called on the Malaysian authorities to conduct a “comprehensive and rapid investigation” into the killing before the assassins could escape.
Fadi, who was 35, was shot dead while on his way to perform dawn prayers at a surau near his residence in Setapak.
One of two men on a motorcycle was reported to have fired at least 10 shots at Fadi. Four shots hit the lecturer in the head and body, killing him on the spot.
Fadi, from Gaza, is a Palestinian imam who is also a lecturer at Universiti Kuala Lumpur.
He was affiliated to Palestinian organisation Hamas.
An electrical engineer, he was reported to have won a number of prestigious scientific awards, including one from the Malaysian government in 2016.
The father of three received a PhD in electrical engineering from the Universiti Malaya and during the course of his study, published 18 scholarly pieces of research which were featured in a number of international journals.
Alongside his scientific career, Fadi was also involved with Islamic organisations such as Humanitarian Care Malaysia (MyCare).
He was also a Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) Malaysia activist.
BDS is a Palestinian-led movement for freedom, justice and equality, with the objective of utilising international pressure to end what it describes as Israeli apartheid and colonialism.