A helicopter carrying President Ebrahim Raisi has crashed on Sunday (May 19), according to Iran’s state media and the country’s mission to the United Nations, via the New York Times.
The helicopter has yet to be found by search-and-rescue workers due to heavy fog. It was also carrying Iran’s foreign minister, Hossein Amir Abdollahian.
State news agency IRNA reported an enormous search operation is underway, with 16 teams attempting to locate the helicopter. Inclement weather was proving an obstacle, and the teams had yet to locate the crash site after almost five hours according to the report.
There are no reports about casualties or the condition of the president. The cause of the crash is also unknown.
“Given the complexities of the region, connection has been difficult, and we are hoping that the rescue teams reach the helicopter and can give us more information,” Ahmad Vahidi, Iran’s interior minister, told state television.
The president was on an official visit to the province of Western Azerbaijan in northwestern Iran. A delegation of ministers traveled with him in a convoy of three helicopters, with the two other aircraft already reaching their destinations.
The governor of the province was also in the helicopter, which crashed in an area called Varzaghan, according to state media.
If the president dies, according to Iranian law, power is transferred to the first vice president, Mohammad Mokhber, and an election must be called within six months.
