Search and rescue operations continued overnight Sunday after an Iranian state helicopter crashed, carrying president Ebrahim Raisi, foreign minister Hossein Amirabdollahian, the governor of East Azerbaijan province and other officials.
Raisi had been travelling to the Iranian city of Tabriz after attending the inauguration of a dam in Azerbaijan with the country’s president, Ilham Aliyev.
There were two other helicopters in the convoy. Both made it safely to their destination.
Heavy fog and rain are making it difficult for emergency teams to find and reach the aircraft. The rugged mountainous region is also hampering operations.
The chopper reportedly went down at around 1pm local Iran time on Sunday. It’s understood communication with the helicopter stopped at that time. There are claims however, that signals from a mobile phone, believed to belong to someone on the helicopter, are being transmitted.
There’s been an outpouring of concern from countries in the region, with Saudi Arabia’s foreign ministry issuing a statement saying, “We affirm that the Kingdom stands by the sisterly Islamic Republic of Iran in these difficult circumstances and its readiness to provide any assistance that the Iranian agencies need.”
Qatar has also expressed deep concern, posting a tweet on X, formerly known as Twitter, offering “to provide all forms of support in the search”. The Gulf state’s foreign ministry spokesman Majed Al-Ansari has extended “Qatar’s wishes for the safety of the president, the foreign minister, and their companions”, the statement added.
Kuwait says it stands “with the Islamic Republic of Iran in these difficult circumstances”.
And, The United Arab Emirates is ready to “support search and rescue operations”.
Meanwhile, the people of Iran are being encouraged to pray for the safety and wellbeing of the president, and the others on board the helicopter at the time of the crash.
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