Iran officially confirms deaths of President Raisi, FM in helicopter crash

Iran’s President Raisi along with others including foreign minister, confirmed dead in a helicopter crash in a East Azerbaijan province

Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi and Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian and others died after the helicopter carrying them crashed in a forested area of East Azerbaijan province, Iran officially confirmed on Monday.

The crash occurred around 4:00 p.m. local time on Sunday, after which an intensive search and rescue operation was launched. However, Iranian authorities were unable to find the wreckage for hours.

Iran requested assistance from Türkiye when adverse weather conditions hindered efforts to find the wreckage.

The helicopter was detected the following morning by Turkish-made UAV, Akinci.

Authorities who arrived at the scene confirmed that President Raisi, Foreign Minister Abdollahian and the accompanying delegation had lost their lives.

Source: Newsroom