Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi speaks during a meeting with the Cabinet in Tehran, Iran, October 8, 2023.
Wana News Agency | Reuters
Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi and Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian were killed in a helicopter crash, state media reported on Monday.
Iranian state television reported that there was “no sign of life” at the crash site of the helicopter carrying Raisi, Amirabdollahian and others.
“All passengers on the helicopter carrying the Iranian president and foreign minister were martyred,” the semi-official Mehr News agency reported.
Drone footage published by the state news agency FARS showed the wreckage of the helicopter on a steep slope.
“The consequences are likely to be rather limited,” Ali Ahmadi, senior fellow at the Geneva Center for Security Policy, told CNBC’s “Street Signs Asia.”
President Raisi played a minor role in deciding national security, Ahmadi said, adding that Iran’s foreign policy was mainly determined by the Office of the Supreme Leader and the Iranian military. “The fundamentals of Iran’s foreign policy are unlikely to change significantly.”
According to state news agency IRNA, Raisi was on his way back after inaugurating a dam on Iran’s shared border with the Republic of Azerbaijan when his helicopter crashed while landing in northern Iran’s Varzaqan region on Sunday evening local time.
Also in the helicopter were the governor of East Azerbaijan, Malik Rahmati, and Raisi’s security personnel.
The president’s convoy included three helicopters, two of which landed safely, Iran’s semi-official Tasnim news agency reported.
Communication with Raisi’s helicopter was lost about half an hour after the flight began, Iran’s vice president for executive affairs Mohsen Mansouri said. Raisi traveled to the city of Tabriz to start an oil project.
Poor weather conditions and the inaccessibility of the area have hampered search and rescue operations, Pirhossein Koulivand, head of Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps, reportedly said.
Turkey and Russia sent planes to help with the search operations.
Raisi, 63, a conservative hardliner, was elected president in 2021 after failing to take office in 2017.
As an established political heavyweight, he was considered a contender to succeed Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khamenei. As president, he took tough action against dissidents in his own country.
This is a developing story. Please check back for updates
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2024-05-20 04:54:42
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