BEIRUT – A research director at a military agency linked to Syria's chemical weapons program was assassinated, a newspaper close to the Syrian government reported Sunday. The pro-government al-Watan newspaper reported on its website that Aziz Esber, of the Scientific Studies and Research Center, died in a blast targeting his car Saturday night, in Syria's Hama province. It said Israel was suspected of carrying out the attack. There was no comment from Israeli or Syrian government officials. The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, which monitors the Syria war through local contacts, also reported Esber's death.