Iran’s supreme leader announces death of President Raisi

Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei has announced the death of the country’s president, Ebrahim Raisi, and declared five days of mourning in the Islamic Republic.

Mr Raisi was killed in a helicopter crash in a mountainous area of north-western Iran, along with Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian.

State media confirmed they were killed after the helicopter they were travelling in came down on Sunday.

Mr Khamenei said he offered his condolences “to the dear Iranian nation.”

Mr Raisi, 63, had been tipped as a potential successor to the supreme leader.

“With deep sorrow and regret, I have received the bitter news of the martyrdom of the people’s President, the competent, hard-working Haj Sayyid Ebrahim Raisi, and his esteemed entourage,” Mr Khamenei wrote in a series of posts on X.

“This bitter tragedy took place while he was serving the people. The entire period that this great, self-sacrificing man held various responsibilities, both during his presidency and before that, he was totally dedicated to serving the people and Islam nonstop.”

Mr Khamenei also asked Vice President Mohammad Mokhber to assume interim duties after the death of the president.

Mr Mokhber will work with the heads of Iran’s legislature and judiciary to prepare for a presidential election within 50 days – a period of time set out in Iran’s constitution for replacing a president who dies in office.

Iran’s cabinet has also appointed Deputy Foreign Minister Ali Bagheri Kani as acting foreign minister.

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“Prominent figures such as the Tabriz Friday Prayer Leader, Hujjat al-Islam Ale-Hashem; the diligent, active Foreign Minister, Mr Amir-Abdollahian; and other individuals who were accompanying them also passed away in this bitter tragedy,” Mr Khamenei said.

PREMIUM TIMES reported that the helicopter carrying the men and their entourage made a hard landing in foggy conditions on Sunday. The area where the aircraft came down is close to the border with Azerbaijan, where Mr Raisi had been meeting President Ilham Aliyev.

According to the BBC, he was there to open the Qiz Qalasi and Khodaafarin dams.

On Monday, the Iranian Red Crescent confirmed the bodies of the president and others who died in the crash had been recovered and search operations had ended.

“We are in the process of transferring the bodies of the martyrs to Tabriz [in Iran’s north-west],” BBC quoted an official as saying.

Iranian news outlet Tasnim, which is affiliated with the country’s Islamic Revolution Guards Corps, reported that President Raisi’s funeral will be held on Tuesday in Tabriz.