Iran’s President and Foreign Minister feared dead in helicopter crash |
A huge search operation is underway in Iran after a helicopter carrying the country’s President Ebrahim Raisi crashed in the mountainous north-west of the country in heavy fog. Iran’s Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian was also on the aircraft.
The men had been visiting Iran’s remote mountain border region with Azerbaijan to inaugurate a new dam project. Two other helicopters in the convoy made the journey safely.
Rescue teams are attempting to locate the helicopter but are being hampered by very poor weather. Iran’s army is reported to have ordered that all resources needed be sent to the search area. The Red Crescent is helping with the search operation. Drones and rescue dogs are being used in the attempt to locate the helicopter. Countries in the region including Turkey have offered assistance with the search.
Mass prayers are being said in mosques in Iran. Iran’s state-run television first announced news of what they described as a “hard-landing”. The country’s supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei delivered a message of calm, saying he hoped that God would return the President to the people. He told Iranians that there would be no disruption to the running of the country.
President Raisi has been a key and controversial figure in Iran for many decades, regarded as a hardliner within the Islamic Republic’s leadership. The accident comes at a time of high tension in the Middle East, with the war in Gaza and fears that the conflict could widen.
Israel and the United States have accused Iran of backing militant groups including Hamas in Gaza, Hezbollah in Lebanon and the Houthis in Yemen. Recently Iran fired hundreds of missiles at Israel. An airstrike on a military base in Iran was widely seen as Israel's response to that attack.
Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian is a well-known figure on the international stage, where he has been involved in talks and negotiations about Iran's nuclear programme.
-
DVR
In The Litter Box w/ Jewels & Catturd
18 hours agoGarland Above The Law | In the Litter Box w/ Jewels & Catturd - Ep. 586 - 6/13/2024
12K16 -
31:49
Mikhaila Peterson
1 hour agoQ and A: Life Update June 2024 | EP 202
2.27K26 -
LIVE
Dave Bondy
37 minutes agoDave Bondy -- Former mainstream media journalist turned independent
411 watching -
DVR
Lee Camp
4 hours agoBREAKING: Saudi Arabia ENDS The Petrodollar!
3.62K -
LIVE
NeoX5
3 hours agoSummer Games [EP9]: Some Horror Games [8/100] | Rumble Gaming
382 watching -
2:16:44
The Shannon Joy Show
3 hours ago🔥🔥PART 2 - 2nd Half - NEW mRNA Super-Shedder Warning! With Japanese Journalist Masako Ganaha
4.29K3 -
2:56:01
Tucker Carlson
3 hours agoVincent Everett Ellison Exposes the Lies Sold to Black America: MLK, Hip Hop Culture, & Democrats
20.8K39 -
14:26
The Comments Section With Brett Cooper
2 hours agoThe Preteen Phase Is Gone.
5.39K14 -
1:44:59
Barstool Yak
5 hours agoThe Yak with Big Cat & Co. Presented by Rhoback | The Yak 6-13-24
11.3K2 -
1:30:55
Right Side Broadcasting Network
6 hours agoLIVE REPLAY: President Trump Gives Remarks to the Press in D.C. - 6/13/24
95.5K79