Tehran, Iran – Iranian state media has reported the death of President Ebrahim Raisi following a helicopter crash in a mountainous region of East Azerbaijan province. Despite these reports, the government has yet to issue an official confirmation of Raisi’s death.
Rescue teams had been searching since Sunday afternoon after the helicopter carrying Raisi, Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian, and other officials went missing. Early Monday, relief workers located the missing helicopter, with state TV announcing the president’s death. “The servant of Iranian nation, Ayatollah Ebrahim Raisi has achieved the highest level of martyrdom whilst serving the people,” state television reported. Mehr news agency also confirmed his death.
State television broadcast photos of Raisi accompanied by the recitation of the Koran, while Vice President for Executive Affairs Mohsen Mansouri posted a Koranic verse on X (formerly Twitter) to express condolences.
Concerns had been growing for the 63-year-old ultraconservative president after contact was lost with the helicopter on Sunday. According to Tasnim news agency, nine people were on board the aircraft. Iran’s Red Crescent chief, Pirhossein Koolivand, stated that rescue teams were moving toward the crash site after locating the wreckage. “The situation is not good,” Koolivand remarked. State TV later reported that there were no signs of survivors.
Drone images shared by Iranian media, including Fars news agency, showed what appeared to be the wreckage of the helicopter. Initial reports on Sunday mentioned an “accident” involving the helicopter in the Jolfa region of East Azerbaijan province. Interior Minister Ahmad Vahidi stated that the helicopter had “made a hard landing” in bad weather and urged people to rely on state television for information, cautioning against foreign media.
Raisi’s convoy included three helicopters, with the other two safely reaching their destination, Tasnim news agency reported. Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei reassured the nation that there would be no disruption in the country’s leadership and urged citizens not to worry.
International expressions of concern and offers of help have poured in from countries including Iraq, Kuwait, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Syria, Russia, China, and Turkey. The European Union activated its rapid response mapping service to aid in the search effort. Iran’s cabinet convened an emergency meeting led by Vice President Mohammad Mokhber following the incident, according to IRNA news agency.
The search operation involved the Army, Revolutionary Guard, and police officers. Television broadcasts showed Red Crescent teams navigating the misty hills, with rows of emergency response vehicles on standby.
Raisi had visited the northwestern province to inaugurate a dam project alongside Azerbaijan’s President Ilham Aliyev on their shared border. Aliyev expressed his concern on X, stating, “We were profoundly troubled by the news of a helicopter carrying the top delegation crash-landing in Iran.”
The incident has drawn significant international attention, coinciding with high regional tensions over the Gaza conflict between Israel and Hamas. A U.S. State Department spokesperson acknowledged the reports of the crash but refrained from further comment. U.S. President Joe Biden has been briefed on the situation, an official confirmed on condition of anonymity.
Raisi has been president since 2021, succeeding moderate Hassan Rouhani. His tenure has seen an economy struggling under U.S. sanctions and widespread protests, notably following the death of Iranian-Kurdish woman Mahsa Amini in police custody in September 2022.
In a speech at Sunday’s dam inauguration, Raisi reiterated Iran’s support for Palestinians, a central aspect of its foreign policy since the 1979 Islamic revolution. Hamas expressed solidarity with Iran in light of the incident, stating, “In this painful incident, we express our full solidarity with the Islamic Republic of Iran, its leadership, government, and people.”
