Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi’s helicopter crashes near Azerbaijan border

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However, Iranian state TV blamed the crash on adverse weather conditions.

Raisi was travelling in a convoy of three helicopters in Iran’s East Azerbaijan province, state TV reported. The incident was said to have happened near Jolfa, a city on the border with Azerbaijan, some 600 kilometres north-west of the Iranian capital, Tehran.

Later, state TV put it farther east near the village of Uzi, but details remained contradictory.

Travelling with Raisi were the foreign minister and the governor of Iran’s East Azerbaijan province, plus officials and bodyguards, the state-run IRNA news agency reported.

Iran’s army chief of staff Major General Mohammad Bagheri ordered all military resources to be directed to the search and rescue operation, state TV reported.

After hard-liners urged the public to pray for Raisi, state TV aired images of the faithful praying at Imam Reza Shrine in the city of Mashhad, one of Shiite Islam’s holiest sites, as well as in Qom and other locations across the country.

“The esteemed president and company were on their way back aboard some helicopters and one of the helicopters was forced to make a hard landing due to the bad weather and fog,” Vahidi, the interior minister, said in comments aired on state TV.

“Various rescue teams are on their way to the region but because of the poor weather and fogginess, it might take time for them to reach the helicopter.

“The region is a bit [rugged] and it’s difficult to make contact. We are waiting for rescue teams to reach the landing site and give us more information.”

Poor weather was also hampering rescue teams, IRNA reported. A rescue helicopter had tried to reach the area, but it could not land due to heavy mist, emergency services spokesman Babak Yektaparast said.

Raisi had been on the border with Azerbaijan earlier on Sunday to inaugurate a dam with Azerbaijan’s President Ilham Aliyev.

The dam is the third one the two nations have built on the Aras River. The visit came despite chilly relations between the countries, including over a gun attack on Azerbaijan’s embassy in Tehran in 2023, and Azerbaijan’s diplomatic relations with Israel, which Iran’s Shiite theocracy views as its main enemy in the region.

The government in Azerbaijan released a statement saying Aliyev was profoundly troubled by the news of the crash, which had occurred after the two leaders had bid a “friendly farewell” after their meeting.

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Aliyev said Azerbaijan stood ready to send any assistance necessary to aid the search. Iran’s neighbour and long-time foe Iraq also released a statement offering search and rescue support.

Iran flies a variety of helicopters, but international sanctions make it difficult to obtain parts for them. Its military air fleet also largely dates back to before the 1979 Islamic Revolution.

Raisi, 63, is a hard-liner who formerly led the country’s judiciary. He is viewed as a protégé of Khamenei and some analysts have suggested he could replace the 85-year-old leader after his death or resignation from the role.

Raisi won Iran’s 2021 presidential election, a vote that saw the lowest turnout in the Islamic Republic’s history. He was sanctioned by the US over his involvement in the mass execution of thousands of political prisoners in 1988 at the end of a bloody Iran-Iraq war.

Under Raisi, Iran now enriches uranium at nearly weapons-grade levels and hampers international inspections. Iran has armed Russia in its war on Ukraine. It has also armed proxy groups in the Middle East, including Yemen’s Houthi rebels and Lebanon’s Hezbollah.

Meanwhile, mass protests in the country have raged for years. The most recent involved the 2022 death of Mahsa Amini, a woman who had been earlier detained over allegedly not wearing a hijab, or headscarf, to the liking of authorities. The months-long security crackdown that followed the demonstrations killed more than 500 people and saw over 22,000 detained.

In March, a United Nations investigative panel found that Iran was responsible for the “physical violence” that led to Amini’s death.

AP, Reuters