A helicopter carrying Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi and his foreign minister crashed Sunday while crossing mountainous terrain in dense fog while returning from a visit to the border with Azerbaijan, an Iranian official said. Reuters.
The official said the lives of Raisi and Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian were “at risk following the helicopter crash.”
“We still have hope, but the information coming from the crash site is very worrying,” the official said, speaking on condition of anonymity.
Bad weather complicated rescue efforts, according to the state news agency. IRNA reported.
State television suspended all its usual programming to show prayers being held for Raisi across the country and, in one corner of the screen, live coverage of rescue teams searching the mountainous area on foot in the middle of a Dense fog.
Earlier, Iran's Interior Minister confirmed that one of the helicopters in the president's convoy made a rough landing.
“Some unconfirmed reports say that the helicopter carrying President Raisi crashed in East Azerbaijan province,” state television said, adding that rescue efforts were underway.
“Harsh weather conditions and dense fog have made it difficult for rescue teams to reach the accident site,” state television said in an on-screen news alert.
According to some local media, Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian and local officials were traveling on the same helicopter as Raisi.
Raisi visited East Azerbaijan province on Sunday, where he inaugurated a dam project in the company of his Azeri counterpart, Ilham Aliev, on the border between the two countries.
Raisi, 63, has been president of the Islamic Republic since June 2021.
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