Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi and the country’s Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian were killed in a helicopter
crash, as reported by
Mehr News Agency, a partner of TV BRICS.

Malek Rahmati, governor of Iran’s East Azerbaijan province, and Mohammad Ali Ale-Hashem, the Imam of Friday Prayer in Tabriz, were also on board. All of them are presumed dead.

The helicopter carrying Ebrahim Raisi and other officials disappeared on 19 May in the mountainous terrain of East Azerbaijan amid dense fog. The Iranian leader and other members of the delegation were attending the opening ceremony of a dam on the Araks River that morning. Two other helicopters from the President’s motorcade arrived safely at their destination.

After more than 10 hours of search efforts, the crashing vehicle was located. It is assumed that the cause of the crash was weather conditions. The authorities of Russia, Saudi Arabia, Iraq and other countries have declared their readiness to provide assistance in the search for the helicopter and investigation of the accident.

Iran’s government held an emergency meeting after news of the crash. Vice President Mohammad Mokhber will become acting president of the republic until elections.

Photo: Mehr News Agency