A helicopter carrying Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi suffered a “exhausting touchdown” on Sunday, Iranian state media reported, with out elaborating. Some started urging the general public to hope for Raisi and the others on board as rescue crews sped by means of a misty, rural forest the place his helicopter was believed to be.
Raisi was touring in Iran’s East Azerbaijan province. State TV mentioned the incident occurred close to Jolfa, a metropolis on the border with the nation of Azerbaijan, some 375 miles northwest of the Iranian capital, Tehran. Later, the TV put it farther east close to the village of Uzi, however particulars remained contradictory.
Touring with Raisi have been Iran’s Overseas Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian, the governor of Iran’s East Azerbaijan province and different officers and bodyguards, the state-run IRNA information company reported. One native authorities official used the phrase “crash” to explain the incident, however he acknowledged to an Iranian newspaper that he had but to succeed in the positioning himself.
Neither IRNA nor state TV supplied any info on Raisi’s situation.
“The esteemed president and firm have been on their approach again aboard some helicopters and one of many helicopters was compelled to make a tough touchdown because of the unhealthy climate and fog,” Inside Minister Ahmad Vahidi mentioned in feedback aired on state TV. “Numerous rescue groups are on their approach to the area however due to the poor climate and fogginess it’d take time for them to succeed in the helicopter.”
He added: “The area is a bit (rugged) and it is tough to make contact. We’re ready for rescue groups to succeed in the touchdown web site and provides us extra info.”
Rescuers have been making an attempt to succeed in the positioning, state TV mentioned, however had been hampered by poor climate circumstances. There had been heavy rain and fog reported with some wind. IRNA referred to as the world a “forest” and the area is thought to be mountainous as nicely.
Raisi had been in Azerbaijan early Sunday to inaugurate a dam with Azerbaijan’s President Ilham Aliyev. The dam is the third one which the 2 nations constructed on the Aras River. The go to got here regardless of chilly relations between the 2 nations, together with over a gun assault on Azerbaijan’s Embassy in Tehran in 2023, and Azerbaijan’s diplomatic relations with Israel, which Iran’s Shiite theocracy views as its important enemy within the area.
Iran flies a wide range of helicopters within the nation, however worldwide sanctions make it tough to acquire elements for them. Its army air fleet additionally largely dates again to earlier than the 1979 Islamic Revolution.
Raisi, 63, is a hard-liner who previously led the nation’s judiciary. He’s seen as a protégé of Iran’s Supreme Chief Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and a few analysts have steered he might exchange the 85-year-old chief after his demise or resignation from the position.
Raisi received Iran’s 2021 presidential election, a vote that noticed the bottom turnout within the Islamic Republic’s historical past. Raisi is sanctioned by the U.S. partly over his involvement within the mass execution of 1000’s of political prisoners in 1988 on the finish of the bloody Iran-Iraq conflict.
Beneath Raisi, Iran now enriches uranium at almost weapons-grade ranges and hampers worldwide inspections. Iran has armed Russia in its conflict on Ukraine, in addition to launched a large drone and missile assault on Israel amid its conflict in opposition to Hamas within the Gaza Strip. It additionally has continued arming proxy teams within the Mideast, like Yemen’s Houthi rebels and Lebanon’s Hezbollah.
