Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi's helicopter crashes, cannot be contacted

Ebrahim Raisi News: In a major development, one of the helicopters in the convoy of three in which Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi was traveling has met with a helicopter crash, Iranian TV reported on Sunday. State TV has not yet given any further information about the incident. According to Iranian news agency, IRNA, Raisi met with his Azerbaijani counterpart Ilham Aliyev this morning and inaugurated the Qiz Kalasi Dam, jointly constructed by the two sides. Iran's Interior Minister has issued a statement in which he has said that no contact has been made with President Ibrahim Raisi.

After this, President Raisi was traveling in East Azerbaijan province of Iran. State TV said the incident occurred near Jolfa, a city on the border with Azerbaijan, about 600 kilometers northwest of Iran's capital Tehran. It is being said about the incident that bad weather could be the reason for it. Rescue operations are also being hampered due to weather. State TV said rescue workers were trying to reach the scene, but were being hampered by bad weather in the area. Heavy rain with some wind was reported.

Who is Ibrahim Raisi?

Iran's President Raisi, 63, is a hard-liner who led the country's judiciary. He is seen as a disciple of Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and some analysts believe he could replace the 85-year-old leader if he dies or resigns.

Raisi won Iran's 2021 presidential election, a vote that saw the lowest turnout in the history of the Islamic Republic. Raisi is sanctioned by the US over his involvement in the mass executions of thousands of political prisoners at the end of the bloody Iran-Iraq war in 1988.

Iran has helped Russia with arms in its war against Ukraine, as well as launched massive drone and missile attacks on Israel amid its war against Hamas in the Gaza Strip. It has also continued to arm proxy groups in the Middle East, such as Yemen's Houthi rebels and Lebanon's Hezbollah.