Iranian President, Ebrahim Raisi, and his Foreign Minister, Hossein Amirabdollahian, and others have been found dead at the site of a helicopter crash in mountainous terrain in the province of East Azerbaijan, state media reported on Monday.
After an overnight search amid foggy conditions, the wreckage of the helicopter that crashed on Sunday was found early Monday. Local officials present at the site confirmed the death of Raisi and his accompanying team.
According to the state-run news agency IRNA, a convoy of three helicopters was en route to Tabriz city on Sunday after Raisi inaugurated Qiz Qalasi Dam at the border with the Azerbaijan Republic earlier in the day.
Foreign Minister Amirabdollahian, East Azerbaijan Province’s Governor Malek Rahmati, and Mehdi Mousavi, the head of Raisi’s guard team, were on board the same aircraft with the Iranian president.
Raisi’s helicopter taking off near Iran-Azerbaijan border
Iranian state media reported on Sunday that the helicopter carrying Raisi experienced a hard landing while crossing mountainous area. The two other helicopters landed safely. State media gave no immediate cause for the crash.
Raisi, 63, was elected president in 2021. His death comes at a critical time for Iran. Dissent is growing over multiple political, economic and social issues, reported Reuters. Meanwhile, pressure is mounting on Tehran over its nuclear program and its support for Russia in its war effort in Ukraine.
Furthermore, the Middle East is unsettled by the Israeli war on Gaza, as Iranian-backed groups have launched attacks across the region. Tensions between Iran and Israel has reached an unprecedented level in April, when Iran launched swarms of drones and missiles on Israel, prompting Israel to respond with a strike in Isfahan.
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