Iran president death latest: Ebrahim Raisi’s funeral procession underway as US says he had ‘blood on his hands’
Iranian president Ebrahim Raisi, along with foreign minister Hossein Amirabdollahian, died in the helicopter crash on Sunday
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Your support makes all the difference.A funeral procession for the late Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi took place in the city of Tabriz on Tuesday, close to the site where his helicopter crashed on Sunday afternoon.
Tens of thousands of people turned out for the event in the capital of the Iranian province of East Azerbaijan, expected to be one of several processions across the country over the coming weeks. Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei is expected to lead congregational funeral prayers in Tehran after another procession in the holy city of Qom.
Despite the vast turnout, mourning across the country for the hardline leader has been muted. Raisi, nicknamed the “Butcher of Tehran” for his role in executing anti-regime protesters in the 1980s, also presided over a vicious crackdown against further protest in 2022 and last year.
US State department spokesperson Matt Miller said Raisi “has blood on his hands” for his involvement in suppressing dissent.
He described the former hardline cleric as “a brutal participant in the repression of the Iranian people for nearly four decades”.
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Thousands turn out to mourn Iran’s President Raisi as others celebrate his death
Thousands of Iranians have turned out to mourn the late Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi after he was killed in a helicopter crash on Sunday.
A video broadcast by state media showed hordes of mourners gathering for a procession through the city of Tabriz in northwest Iran, near the site where the politician’s helicopter crashed.
Raisi, 63, was one of eight passengers, including the foreign minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian, on board the helicopter as it flew through a mountainous region south of neighbouring Azerbaijan in foggy conditions.
Despite the huge crowds on Tuesday, most of whom appeared to be male, swathes of the Iranian population have been celebrating Raisi’s death on social media. It is also unclear what international presence a funeral this week will draw, as Raisi faced US sanctions for his part in mass executions in 1988 and for abuses targeting protesters and dissidents while leading the country’s judiciary. Iran under Raisi also shipped bomb-carrying drones to Russia to be used in its war on Ukraine.
“I don’t feel comfortable sending condolences while Iran is sending drones that are used against civilians in Ukraine,” wrote Lithuanian foreign minister Gabrielius Landsbergis on the social platform X.
Read the full story here:
Thousands turn out to mourn Iran’s President Raisi as others celebrate his death
Hardliner’s coffin is taken from northwest city of Tabriz to capital Tehran and holy city of Qom before funeral in his hometown of Mashhad
America’s statement on the death of Iranian President Raisi and others in helicopter crash
The US State Department said: “The United States expresses its official condolences for the death of Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi, Foreign Minister Amir-Abdollahian, and other members of their delegation in a helicopter crash in northwest Iran.
“As Iran selects a new president, we reaffirm our support for the Iranian people and their struggle for human rights and fundamental freedoms.”
Watch as funeral of Iran president Ebrahim Rasi held after fatal helicopter crash
The funeral of Iranpresident Ebrahim Rasi was held following his death in a helicopter crash.
The Iranian president, the country’s foreign minister and several other officials were found dead on Monday, hours after their helicopter crashed in a foggy, mountainous region of the country’s northwest, Iran state media reported.
Watch as funeral of Iran president Rasi held after fatal helicopter crash
Watch on Tuesday 21 May, as the funeral of Iranpresident Ebrahim Rasi is held following his death in a helicopter crash.
Who is Mohammad Mokhber? The interim president who will lead Iran for next 50 days
Iran‘s supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has appointed Mohammad Mokhber as the country’s acting president following the death of Ebrahim Raisi in a helicopter crash.
Raisi, his foreign minister Hossein Amirabdollahian and two senior local officials were travelling in a helicopter with their security detail when the aircraft crashed in the mountainous region of Iran’s northwest on Sunday.
The crash site was discovered on the side of a steep mountain on Monday morning with only the burned-out wreckage of the helicopter remaining. There were no survivors.
Read the full story here:
Who is Mohammad Mokhber? The interim president who will lead Iran for next 50 days
After president Ebrahim Raisi’s death in a helicopter crash, his deputy for the past four years will be tasked with arranging new elections
What the sudden death of Iran’s president will mean for the Middle East and beyond
There is a series of unanswered questions around the helicopter crash which killed Ebrahim Raisi, but one thing is clear, writes Kim Sengupta – the hardline establishment will not willingly loosen its grip on power:
What the sudden death of Iran’s president will mean for the Middle East and beyond
There is a series of unanswered questions around the helicopter crash which killed Ebrahim Raisi, but one thing is clear, writes Kim Sengupta – the hardline establishment will not willingly loosen its grip on power
Mourners surround truck carrying remains of Iran president
How helicopter crash that killed Iranian president Ebrahim Raisi unfolded
Iran’s president Ebrahim Raisi has been found dead in a helicopter crash after an hours-long search, according to state media.
The 63-year-old and Iran’s foreign minister Hossein Amirabdollahian were among senior officials whose bodies were found at the site of the crash in Iran’s East Azerbaijan province on Monday, the state-run Irna news agency reported.
The officials were travelling following a visit with the Azerbaijani president to discuss the joint Qiz-Qalasi Dam infrastructure project over the Aras River, which separates Iran and the Azerbaijani exclave Nakhchivan, when the helicopter crashed between Jolfa and the border region Varzaqan.
Read the full story here:
How helicopter crash that killed Iranian president Ebrahim Raisi unfolded
Body of the 63-year-old hardliner was found in East Azerbaijan province, state media reports
Pictures as crowds carry coffin of Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi in Tehran
Ebrahim Raisi: Who was the Iranian president killed in fiery helicopter crash?
Iranian president Ebrahim Raisi has been confirmed dead in a helicopter crash after hours of frantic searching through a foggy mountainous region.
Born to a conservative family in eastern Iran, Raisi studied theology at the seminaries in Qom.
He was a teenager when the country’s popular revolution established Iran as a theocracy, but he quickly became an enthusiastic participant in enforcing the vision of Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, the founder of the Islamic Republic.
Read the piece here:
Ebrahim Raisi: Who was the Iranian president killed in fiery helicopter crash?
Iranian President’s life at risk with information emerging from scene of helicopter crash
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