DUBAI — Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi, a hardliner long seen as a potential successor to Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, was killed in a helicopter crash in mountainous terrain near the Azerbaijan border, officials and state media said on Monday (May 20).
Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi attends a meeting with Azerbaijan's President Ilham Aliyev on the Azerbaijan-Iran border, May 19, 2024.May 20, 2024 5:15 AM
"President Raisi, the foreign minister and all the passengers in the helicopter were killed in the crash," a senior Iranian official told Reuters, asking not to be named because of the sensitivity of the matter. Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who holds ultimate power with a final say on foreign policy and Iran's nuclear programme, had earlier sought to reassure Iranians, saying there would be no disruption to state affairs.A Turkish drone identified a source of heat suspected to be the helicopter's wreckage early on Monday and had shared the coordinates of the possible crash site with Iranian authorities, Anadolu news agency said on X.
"We are thoroughly searching every inch of the general area of the crash," state media quoted a regional army commander as saying. "The area has very cold, rainy, and foggy weather conditions. The rain is gradually turning into snow."The White House said US President Joe Biden had been briefed on reports about the crash. China said it was deeply concerned. The European Union offered emergency satellite mapping technology.
For years many have seen Raisi as a strong contender to succeed Khamenei, who has endorsed Raisi's main policies.
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