Iran's Red Crescent: President Raisi, FM Amirabdollahian killed in helicopter crash

The chief of Iran's Red Crescent Pirhossein Koolivand says that all passengers on the presidential helicopter have died.

"Upon finding the helicopter, there was no sign of the helicopter passengers being alive as of yet," Koolivand stated to state TV.

"The president of the Islamic Republic of Iran, Ayatollah Ebrahim Raisi, and his entourage perished in a helicopter crash in a mountainous area in northwestern Iran. Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian is also among the dead," Mehr news agency reported.

The identification of the remains is currently underway.

The president's helicopter, which crashed into a mountain near the northern Varzaqan area of East Azerbaijan province, 30 km from the Azerbaijani border, was completely burned in the crash.

Rescue teams are working at the site where the helicopter wreckage was found.

On May 19, 2024, President of Iran Ebrahim Raisi was in Azerbaijan to inaugurate the Giz Galasi hydroelectric complex with President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev. The crash took place while Raisi was traveling in Iran's East Azerbaijan, near the city of Jolfa, on the Azerbaijan–Iran border. Besides Raisi, the helicopter carried foreign minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian, governor-general of East Azerbaijan province Malek Rahmati, and Mohammad Ali Ale-Hashem, the representative of the Supreme Leader in East Azerbaijan. All nine passengers and crew were killed, according to the Iranian Red Crescent Society.

A day before the crash, the Iran Meteorological Organization issued an orange weather warning for the region due to fog and rain. Several helicopters departed simultaneously, with the others safely reaching their destinations.

Janez Lenarčič, European Commissioner for Crisis Management, announced that the European Union would activate the Copernicus Emergency Management Service, which is used for rapid response satellite mapping, at Iran's request.

Ebrahim Raisi was born in Mashhad, Iran, on December 14, 1960. He completed his religious education in 1980. In 1985, he moved to Tehran, where he was appointed Deputy Prosecutor of the city. In 1988, he participated in organizing the execution of regime opponents, including members of the People's Mujahedin Organization of Iran. From 1989 to 1994, he served as the Prosecutor of Tehran. In 1994, he was appointed head of the General Inspection Office.

In 2004, Raisi was appointed First Vice Chief Justice of Iran. In 2005, President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad offered him the post of Minister of Intelligence, but Raisi declined. In August 2014, Ebrahim Raisi became Prosecutor-General of Iran. In March 2016, he resigned from this position to head the Astan Quds Razavi, one of the wealthiest Islamic foundations. Raisi ran for president in 2017 but lost to moderate incumbent president Hassan Rouhani. In 2019, the US sanctioned Raisi for his direct involvement in the execution of political prisoners in the late 1980s. In 2021, Raisi was elected President of Iran.