Amid sparse details, reports out of Iran indicate that a helicopter carrying Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi suffered some type of incident on Sunday and may have crashed.
The chopper experienced a “hard landing,” Iranian state media reported, according to the Associated Press.
The incident took place in Iran’s East Azerbaijan province near its border with the country of Azerbaijan.
One Iranian official called the incident a “crash” but said he had not yet reached the scene.
Iran's IRNA news agency called the areas of the incident a “forest.”
⚡️BREAKING
IRNA reports that Dizmar forest is the exact location of the accident of the helicopter carrying President Raisi pic.twitter.com/Cf7XfKPDOZ
— Iran Observer (@IranObserver0) May 19, 2024
State TV described poor weather conditions in the areas of the incident.
“Fars News reports that contact with the helicopter transporting the Iranian president has been lost,” Iran Observer posted on X.
⚡️BREAKING
Fars News reports that contact with the helicopter transporting the Iranian president has been lost. pic.twitter.com/3r1HLs9Huj
— Iran Observer (@IranObserver0) May 19, 2024
“Reports indicate that the helicopter carrying Ebrahim Raisi, the President of the Islamic Republic of #Iran, has experienced an incident in East Azerbaijan,” Iran’s Tasnim News Agency posted on X.
“However, some of the president's companions on this helicopter were able to communicate with Central Headquarters, raising hopes that the incident could have ended without casualties," the post said.
"There were three helicopters in this convoy, two of which were carrying ministers and officials, and they arrived at their destination safely,” the agency posted.
Incident Reported for Helicopter Carrying Iranian President
Reports indicate that the helicopter carrying Ebrahim Raisi, the President of the Islamic Republic of #Iran, has experienced an incident in East Azerbaijan.
However, some of the president's companions on this helicopter… pic.twitter.com/pwr0R3Qtze
— Tasnim News Agency (@Tasnimnews_EN) May 19, 2024
“Seyyed Mohammad-Ali Al-Hashem, Tabriz's Friday Prayer Imam, and Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian were also reportedly on the helicopter with the president,” the agency posted.
According to The AP, Raisi had been in Azerbaijan to inaugurate a dam in a ceremony with Azerbaijan’s President Ilham Aliyev.
Raisi, 63, has been sanctioned by the U.S. in part because of the execution of political prisoners in 1988.
Under his leadership, Iran has supplied weapons to anti-Israel terrorist groups.
