20 May 2024
The helicopter carrying Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi and high-ranking government officials crashed in northwest Iran on May 19. The exact fate of the people on the helicopter is still unknown, and rescue operations are still underway.
After President Raisi attended the inauguration of a dam on the border of Azerbaijan and Iran, the helicopter they were traveling in crashed in the Bazakan region on their way back. Iran’s Foreign Minister Hossein Amirat Dolahin and East Azerbaijan Governor Malek Ramati were on board the helicopter. The helicopter lost contact with two other helicopters that were flying together half an hour after takeoff.
It is said that the place where the helicopter crashed is a mountainous area with heavy snow and difficult to travel, so search and rescue operations are facing difficulties.
Interior Minister Ahmed Vahidi also said that the search for the wreckage of the helicopter will take time due to the bad weather. The Iranian Red Crescent said it had doubled the number of rescue teams searching the area where the helicopter crashed from 20 to 40.
Iranian Vice President for Administration Mansori said on May 19 that the two members of the crashed helicopter had contacted rescue teams, so the helicopter crash was not considered serious.
According to further reports received on the morning of May 20, the exact location of the helicopter crash has been determined and ground teams are heading to that location.
