A helicopter of the presidency of Iran was involved this Sunday, May 19 in an “accident” in the northwest of the country, and uncertainty remained over the fate of President Ebrahim Raïssi who would be one of the passengers on board , announced official media.
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“ There are unconfirmed reports that the helicopter carrying President Raisi crashed in East Azerbaijan province “, state television initially indicated, adding that operations were ” in progress » to locate him while the weather conditions were bad.
The official IRNA news agency then reported thatEbrahim Raïssias well as the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Hossein Amir-Abdollahian, were among the passengers of the plane.
It is a mountainous area, 100 kilometers from the city of Tabriz, in the northwest of Iran. Ebrahim Raïssi visited the province of Eastern Azerbaijan on Sunday, where he notably inaugurated a joint dam in the company of the President of Azerbaijan, Ilham Aliev, on the border between the two countries.
A search was launched to find the helicopter, but was made difficult by the ” adverse weather conditions “, including fog, Interior Minister Ahmed Vahidi said on state television.
For his part, the minister did not confirm whether President Raïssi was on board the aircraft, which was part of a convoy of three helicopters carrying the presidential delegation. “ It may take time to reach the helicopter area “, he added, although this place would be located in the forest of Dizmar, near the town of Varzaghan. Two helicopters landed safely in Tabriz, the large city in northwestern Iran, but not the one in which Ebrahim Raïssi was.
Prayers for Ebrahim Raïssi
A sign of the seriousness of the situation, several ministers left for the city of Tabriz to manage relief operations. The chief of staff of the armed forces also announced the mobilization of all the resources of the army and the Revolutionary Guards to find the president’s helicopter. Iranian television also asks the population to pray for the life of President Raïssi, reports our correspondent in Tehran, Siavosh Ghazi.
The president is the second person in state after the supreme guide. In the event of death, new elections must be organized within two months. At the moment, we are waiting for official information on the crash of the device. Ebrahim Raïssi, a 63-year-old ayatollah, has held this position since June 2021. Always wearing his black turban and wearing a long religious coat, he succeeded the moderate Hassan Rouhani, who beat him in the 2017 presidential election. and could no longer stand again after two consecutive terms.