Would You like a feature Interview?
All Interviews are 100% FREE of Charge
Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi has died in a helicopter crash in northwestern Iran, multiple news agencies reported citing Iranian state media.
Iran’s Interior Minister Ahmad Vahidi told Iran’s state news agency IRNA that the helicopter carrying Raisi and other Iranian officials was forced to make a “hard landing” on Sunday, without providing further details.
Officials said dense fog, bad weather, and ultimately overnight conditions prevented rescue workers from quickly arriving at the scene, leaving the president’s status unknown for several hours. It is said that
The cause of the crash remains unknown.
Iran’s head of emergency medical services, Pirhossein Krivand, said on Monday that there was “no trace” of any survivors among the passengers who were flying with Raisi. per IRNA.
Mr Krivand told state television that the search had been “extremely difficult” due to darkness, heavy fog and rain. According to Bloomberg.
Also on board the helicopter were Iran’s foreign minister, the governor of East Azerbaijan, and other officials.
A high-level Iranian delegation was returning from a dam opening ceremony near the Azerbaijan border. Two other helicopters carrying ministers and officials attending the ceremony arrived safely at their destination, IRNA reported.
Mohammad Mokhber is Iran’s next presidential candidate, and Al Jazeera reports that he will remain in office until new elections are held.
According to Al Jazeera, Raisi’s body and those of the other passengers who died in the helicopter crash were taken to the city of Tabriz, where an autopsy was performed, followed by the first official state funeral on Tuesday morning, followed by a funeral service. It is said that he is scheduled to be killed. south of Qom on Tuesday evening. According to IRNA.
Iran’s supreme leader Ayatollah Khamenei, declared Five days of national mourning. Syria and Lebanon A three-day national mourning period was also announced.
Who is Ebrahim Raisi?
Iran elected Raisi in 2021 after an election with the lowest turnout in the country’s history. Associated Press report.
Raisi is considered a “hardliner” of Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, and a “disciple” of Khamenei, who actually holds power in the country.
Some analysts had previously suggested that Raisi could succeed Khamenei after his death or resignation, according to the Associated Press.
Raisi has led Iran through rising tensions in the region, including clashes between Israel and Hamas in the Gaza Strip. Iran is one of Hamas’s main sponsors. Shadow war with Israel For many years.
“Our hearts are with the Iranian people as friends and brothers,” Hamas said in a statement on Sunday, according to Iran’s state news agency.
In April, Iran launched a barrage of missiles at Israel in an unprecedented direct attack.
Most of these attacks were thwarted and ultimately caused little damage. This was in response to an Israeli attack on the Iranian consulate in Damascus, Syria, on April 1, in which several senior Iranian officials were killed.
In 2019, the United States sanctioned Raisi on human rights charges for his role on the Death Penalty Commission, which ordered the execution of thousands of political prisoners in the late 1980s.
During that era, Iran sent thousands of dissidents to detention centers across the country, many of whom were executed on orders from Iran’s supreme leader. United States Institute of Peace He cited a report by Amnesty International.
According to USIP, Raisi is one of four members of a committee that subjected many prisoners to what the Amnesty International report called “torture and other cruel, inhuman, and degrading treatment and punishment.” It is reported that one of the