Key Developments
- Iran President Raisi, and Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian Iranian died with other occupants of helicopter
- Rescuers say they found the helicopter, but there are ‘no signs’ of survivors at the crash site
- Countries across the Middle East express solidarity with Iran
- The helicopter may have got into ‘bad weather’
Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi and Foreign Minister Amirabdollahian along with others who have been onboard the helicopter have died, multiple Iranian news agencies have confirmed.
You Can Also Read: Helicopter Carrying Iranian President, FM Is Missing After ‘Difficult Landing’
Their helicopter crashed on Sunday in treacherous, mountainous terrain amid icy conditions. An Iranian official delivered the grim update on Monday as search teams located the wreckage in East Azerbaijan province, revealing a scene of devastation.
“President Raisi’s helicopter was completely burned in the crash,” Reuters reported quoting the Iranian official. “Unfortunately, all passengers are feared dead.”
The semi-official Mehr News Agency reports that the Iranian president, foreign minister and other occupants of the helicopter, including East Azerbaijan Province Governor Malek Rahmati, have been “martyred” (killed).
Rescue crews battled blizzards and rugged terrain through the night to reach the crash site in the early hours. Pirhossein Kolivand, head of Iran’s Red Crescent, painted a somber picture: “We can see the wreckage, and the situation does not look good.”
The tragic incident has cast a pall over the nation, with authorities bracing for the worst as efforts continue to examine the remote crash site. The incident comes as Iran under the Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and Raisi launched an unprecedented drone-and-missile attack on Israel last month and has enriched uranium closer than ever to weapons-grade levels.
Iran has also faced years of mass protests against its Shiite theocracy over an ailing economy and women’s rights — making the moment that much more sensitive for Tehran and the future of the country as the Israel-Hamas war inflames the wider Middle East.
Raisi was returning from a ceremony to inaugurate a dam on Iran’s common border with the Azerbaijan Republic, when his helicopter crashed upon landing in northern Iran’s Varzaqan region on Sunday evening local time, according to state news agency IRNA.
The presidential convoy consisted of three helicopters, with Raisi aboard a US-made Bell 212 aircraft along with East Azerbaijan’s governor Malik Rahmati and his security detail. While two helicopters landed safely, communication with Raisi’s chopper was lost around 30 minutes into the flight, said Vice President for Executive Affairs Mohsen Mansouri. Their destination was Tabriz city, where Raisi was set to launch an oil project.
Inclement weather and the remote, impassable terrain severely hampered initial search and rescue efforts, as stated by Revolutionary Guards chief Pirhossein Koulivand.
However, a Turkish drone later detected a heat signature suspected to be the wreckage and shared the coordinates with Iranian authorities.
To aid the high-stakes operation, Turkey and Russia deployed aircrafts to assist Iranian teams braving blizzard conditions in the rugged region.
In Tehran, a group of men kneeling on the side of the street clasped strands of prayer beads and watched a video of Raisi praying, some of them visibly weeping.
“If anything happens to him we’ll be heartbroken,” said one of the men, Mehdi Seyedi. “May the prayers work and may he return to the arms of the nation safe and sound.”
Who is Ebrahim Raisi?
Raisi, 63, is a hard-liner who formerly led the country’s judiciary. He is viewed as a protege of Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and some analysts have suggested he could replace the 85-year-old leader after his death or resignation from the role.
Raisi began studying at the renowned Qom religious seminary at the young age of 15, and proceeded to learn under several of the top Muslim scholars of the time. He rose through the ranks of the judicial and political systems and ran unsuccessfully for president in 2017 before winning four years later.
He has been in power since 2021 when he won the country’s last presidential election.
He currently is subject to US sanctions over his involvement in the mass execution of thousands of political prisoners in 1988.
Under Raisi, Iran now enriches Uranium at nearly weapons-grade levels and hampers international inspections. Last month, Raisi threatened his hands were “on the trigger” if Israel were to target any of its nuclear sites amidst rising tensions.
The Person Next in Line In The Presidency
With Iranian officials reporting “no sign of life” at the remote helicopter crash site, attention now turns to Vice President Mohammad Mokhber, who is constitutionally next in line for the presidency. Raisi’s demise is not the first death of a sitting Iranian president, In 1981, the Mojahedin-e Khalq of Iran assassinated President Mohammad-Ali Rajai.
According to Iran’s laws, should the president pass away or become incapacitated, the first vice president assumes the duties until elections can be held within 50 days maximum.
Unlike many nations where vice presidents are elected, Iran’s first VP is an appointed position. Mokhber was named to this key role by Raisi in August 2021, shortly after the latter took office. He is the seventh to serve in this capacity since a constitutional revision.
Prior to his vice presidency, Mokhber headed Iran’s Setad, a powerful economic conglomerate under the Supreme Leader’s control, for 14 years. Focused largely on charitable efforts, the organization is estimated to be worth tens of billions according to Reuters.
International Reactions Pouring in
Reaction is pouring in from around the world, after reports of a helicopter carrying Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi crashing near Iran’s border with Azerbaijan.
World leaders, opponents of the Islamic Republic as well as its apologists are rampant with posts on social media.
Armenia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs tweeted for Raisi and other Iranian officials on that flight and reaffirmed their commitment as a close ally of Iran.
The President of Azerbaijan, IIham Aliyev, posted on X, that he was “profoundly troubled by the news” and sent his “prayers” to Raisi and all involved. Raisi was returning to Iran from a visit to the Azerbaijani border where he met with Aliyev, and they cut the ribbon on a major dam along their shared border.
India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi posted to X his deep concern over reports of the helicopter crash and said he prays for the Iranian president and his entourage.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said, “I convey my best wishes to our neighbour, friend and brother Iranian people and government,” Erdogan said in a post on social media platform X.
Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova earlier in the day said in a comment carried by Russia’s RIA news agency, “Russia is ready to extend all necessary help in the search for the missing helicopter and the investigation of the reasons for the incident.”
