Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi, Iranian Foreign Minister Hosein Amir Abdollahian and all members of the delegation returning from a visit to Azerbaijan were killed in a helicopter crash. This was reported by Mehr News Agency.
The helicopter carrying Ebrahim Raisi crashed in the afternoon of 19 May after the meeting of the Iranian leader with Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev, making a hard landing. According to preliminary information, the helicopter lost control due to dense fog and electronics failure, fell on a mountainside and caught fire, and was searched for more than 10 hours by 73 rescue teams.
“The Iranian president and his entourage were killed in the accident that happened to the helicopter… Ebrahim Raisi, the president of our country, died in the helicopter crash in a mountainous region in northwestern Iran, Foreign Minister Hossein Amir Abdollahian is also among the dead,” Mehr said in a statement.
Also on board the helicopter were Tabriz Imam Mohammad Ali al-Hashem, East Azerbaijan Province head Malek Rahmati, the helicopter crew and one security guard.
The information about the death of Raisi and the entire delegation was confirmed by Iranian Vice President Mohsen Mansouri.
According to the Iranian Constitution, the powers of the president are transferred to the first deputy. Mohammad Mokhber has held the position since 2021. As reported by the agency ISNA, in Iran convened an emergency meeting of the government.
Earlier, the Rostec state corporation said that Russian self-propelled artillery units with a new fire control system made it possible to point-blank destroy the positions of Ukrainian formations in the SMO zone.
