A helicopter carrying Iran's president, foreign minister and other state
officials reportedly crashed in the mountainous areas of northern Iran
on Sunday.
The group was returning from Azerbaijan when the helicopter had
to make a hard landing.
According to state media, at least 40 rescue teams and
dozens of drones raced to find the helicopter,
but mountainous terrain and heavy fog complicated their efforts.
Iranian President Ibrahim Raisi and the others aboard the flight
were confirmed dead on May 20th.
Ricey served for decades as a prosecutor and later Chief
Justice and the Islamic Revolutionary courts.
He became known as the Butcher of Tehran because he
was one of four people on the prosecution committee responsible
for the execution of thousands of political prisoners in 1988.
His election to the presidency in 2021 assured a harder
line era for the Islamic Republic.
Racy oversaw the tightening of Iran's morality laws,
the increased backing of militant groups across the Middle East,
and the fast tracking of Iran's nuclear program.
During his presidency, Iran faced large anti government demonstrations after
the death of a young woman,
Masa Amini and police custody.
Racy's government responded to the protesters with a brutal crackdown
that included killings and executions.
Ricey was the second most powerful political figure in Iran,
behind its supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
He was widely seen as how many his choice to
succeed him as supreme leader.
In a video statement, Khamenei urged Iranians to pray for
those on the flight and said there would be no
disruption in the work of the country.
Iran's first Vice president, Mohammed Mukbar,
assumed presidential powers. Khamenei asked Mukbar to ensure the election
of a new president within 50 days,
state media reported. The death of Raisi and other officials
could signal the reshaping of the future of the Islamic
Republic.