Iran President Ebrahim Raisi was killed in a helicopter crash in East Azerbaijan province on Sunday, Iranian media said. The chopper carrying Iran President Raisi and his foreign minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian had disappeared over a mountainous region
There was “no sign” of life among passengers of the helicopter, Iran’s state television said. “Upon finding the helicopter, there was no sign of the helicopter passengers being alive as of yet,” the state TV said.
This incident follows a period of heightened regional tensions, particularly in light of the Gaza conflict and Iran’s recent escalations with Israel. President Raisi, who has been in office since 2021, has pledged Iran’s steadfast support for Palestine, a stance reiterated during his recent dam inauguration speech.
Iran state media shared videos of the leader on board the chopper on Sunday. The video shows the Iranian leader looking out of an aircraft window as the camera pans to show several senior officials including Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian seated opposite him.
Here are the LIVE updates on Iran President’s helicopter crash:
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Iran-backed members of the “Axis of Resistance” against Israel and its allies expressed their condolences Monday after Tehran confirmed President Ebrahim Raisi had died in a helicopter crash, reported news agency AFP. Palestinian Hamas, Lebanon’s Hezbollah movement, Yemen’s Huthi rebels, the Syrian government, and Iraq-based armed groups all mourned the death of President Raisi and eight others on Sunday.
Iran president Ebrahim Raisi’s death in a helicopter crash is a major blow to the Islamic republic’s clerical leadership, an exiled opposition group said Monday, predicting a succession of crises, reported news agency AFP. The People’s Mujahedin of Iran (MEK) and its political wing the National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI) have long detested Raisi, accusing him of involvement in the 1988 mass executions of thousands of their members and other dissidents when he was a young prosecutor.
Raisi’s death “represents a monumental and irreparable strategic blow to the mullahs’ supreme leader Ali Khamenei and the entire regime, notorious for its executions and massacres”, NCRI leader Maryam Rajavi said in a statement. “It will trigger a series of repercussions and crises within theocratic tyranny, which will spur rebellious youths into action,” she said.
The Iranian Red Crescent said that the bodies of president Ebrahim Raisi and others who died in a helicopter crash had been recovered, and search operations had ended.
“We are in the process of transferring the bodies of the martyrs to Tabriz” in Iran’s northwest, Red Crescent chief Pirhossein Koolivand told state TV, adding that “the search operations have come to an end.”
Iran’s top nuclear negotiator Ali Bagheri appointed acting foreign minister
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Iran’s three branches of government held an extraordinary meeting on Monday, with First Vice President Mohammad Mokhber representing the executive branch following the death of President Ebrahim Raisi in a helicopter crash, state TV said.
“We will follow the path of President Raisi in fulfilling assigned duties without any interruption,” Mokhber said. The three branches to which state TV referred are the executive, the legislative and the judiciary.
If a president dies in office, the Islamic Republic’s constitution says that the first vice president takes over for an interim period of 50 days, with the approval of the Supreme Leader, who has the final say in all matters of state in Iran.
A new presidential election would be held at the end of the 50 days.
China’s President Xi Jinping on Monday paid tribute to Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi, describing his “tragic death” in a helicopter crash as “a great loss to the Iranian people”.
Xi sent “sincere condolences” to the Iran’s first vice president, foreign ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin said at a press briefing. “(Raisi’s) tragic death is a great loss to the Iranian people, and the Chinese people have lost a good friend,” Wang quoted Xi as saying.
Iran’s supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei assigned vice president Mohammad Mokhber to assume interim duties after the death of president Ebrahim Raisi in a helicopter crash a day earlier.
“In accordance with Article 131 of the constitution, Mokhber is in charge of leading the executive branch,” said Khamenei in a statement, adding that Mokhber will be required to work with the heads of legislative and judicial to prepare for presidential elections “within a maximum period of 50 days”.
Iran’s supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei announced on Monday five days of mourning for President Ebrahim Raisi who died in a helicopter crash.
“I announce five days of public mourning and offer my condolences to the dear people of Iran,” said Khamenei in an official statement a day after the death of Raisi and other officials in the crash in East Azerbaijan province.
Russian President Vladimir Putin on Monday hailed Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi as an “outstanding politician” and said his death in a helicopter crash was an “irreplaceable loss.”
Turkey on Monday said it was “deeply saddened” by the death of Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi in a helicopter crash.
Turkey “shares the pain of the friendly and brotherly Iranian people,” Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan said.
Raisi, Amir-Abdollahian were Russia’s ‘true friends’, says Russia’s Sergei Lavrov
Palestinian group Hamas and Iran-backed Hezbollah mourns Iran’s Raisi as ‘protector of resistance movements’.
Deeply shocked to hear of the passing away of Iran’s President Dr Ebrahim Raisi and Foreign Minister H. Amir-Abdollahian in the helicopter crash.
Recall my many meetings with them, most recently in January 2024.
Our condolences to their families. We stand with the people of…
-Dr. S. Jaishankar (Modi Ka Parivar) (@DrSJaishankar) May 20, 2024
Deeply saddened and shocked by the tragic demise of Dr. Seyed Ebrahim Raisi, President of the Islamic Republic of Iran. His contribution to strengthening India-Iran bilateral relationship will always be remembered. My heartfelt condolences to his family and the people of Iran….
– Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) May 20, 2024
BREAKING: Iran President Ebrahim Raisi Dies In Chopper Crash: Iranian News Reports
The footage shows the moment the president’s helicopter wreckage was found by the volunteer drone team of the Relief & Rescue Organization of the Red Crescent pic.twitter.com/xJ3qCdUi9t
– IRNA News Agency (@IrnaEnglish) May 20, 2024
