Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi was on board a helicopter that experienced a hard landing on Sunday, May 19, 2024, state media reported. The helicopter, also carrying Iran’s Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian, encountered the accident in challenging weather conditions.
The Interior Minister has stated that rescuers are struggling to reach the site due to heavy fog and difficult terrain. The condition of President Raisi and the other passengers remains unknown, as no contact has been made with those on board.
President Raisi was traveling to Tabriz in northwest Iran after returning from the border with Azerbaijan, where he inaugurated the Qiz Qalasi and Khodaafarin dams. A reporter from the Fars news agency noted that visibility in the mountainous and wooded area is severely limited, down to only about five meters, complicating the search efforts.
Iranian MP Ahmad Alirezabeigi, representing Tabriz, reported that while the other two helicopters in the convoy landed safely, the helicopter carrying the president and foreign minister has not yet been located. Footage on state television has shown worshippers in Mashhad praying for the president’s health.
Background on President Ebrahim Raisi:
Ebrahim Raisi, 63, was elected president in 2021 on his second attempt. Known as a hardline cleric, he is considered a potential successor to Ayatollah Khamenei, the country’s Supreme Leader since 1989. In 2019, the Supreme Leader appointed Raisi as head of the judiciary, and he also serves as the deputy chairman of the Assembly of Experts, the body responsible for electing the next Supreme Leader.
