Faith Nyasuguta
Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi has been confirmed dead following a helicopter crash in a mountainous region in northwest Iran.
The crash, which occurred amid foggy conditions on Sunday, left the president and his foreign minister missing for over 12 hours. Rescue teams located the crash site on Monday morning.
“President Raisi, the foreign minister, and all passengers in the helicopter were killed in the crash,” a senior Iranian official told news outlets, requesting anonymity.
Iran’s Mehr news agency confirmed, “All passengers of the helicopter carrying the Iranian president and foreign minister were martyred.” State TV broadcast images showing the aircraft wrecked against a mountain peak.
The crash happened as President Raisi was returning from a visit to neighboring Azerbaijan to inaugurate a dam. Alongside the president, the governor of Iran’s East Azerbaijan province, the representative of the Leader of the Islamic Revolution to East Azerbaijan province, and bodyguards were also on board, as reported by the state-run Irna news agency.
An official told Reuters that, “President Raisi’s helicopter was completely burned in the crash … unfortunately, all passengers are feared dead.” The helicopter was identified as an American-made Bell 212 by the state news agency IRNA.
Raisi, 63, considered a frontrunner to succeed Ayatollah Ali Khamenei as Iran’s Supreme Leader, was traveling after a visit to the Azerbaijan border when the helicopter crashed. Iran’s foreign minister, Hossein Amirabdollahian, the governor of East Azerbaijan province, and other officials were also aboard the helicopter.
Initially described as a “hard landing,” the crash was attributed to the challenging foggy weather conditions.
The chief of staff of Iran’s army had mobilized all military and elite Revolutionary Guard resources for the search and rescue operations, which were hampered by bad weather. As the sun rose, rescuers were able to spot the helicopter from a distance of about 1.25 miles, the head of the Iranian Red Crescent Society, Pir Hossein Kolivand, told state media.
This tragic incident marks a significant loss for Iran, with the deaths of several high-ranking officials, including the president and the foreign minister, raising questions about the country’s leadership succession and future diplomatic engagements.
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