Iran Mourns President Raisi's Death In Helicopter Crash

Tehran, (APP - UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 20th May, 2024) Iranian president Ebrahim Raisi was confirmed dead on Monday after search and rescue teams found his crashed helicopter in a fog-shrouded western mountain region, sparking mourning in the Islamic republic.

Supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who has ultimate authority in Iran, declared five days of mourning and assigned vice president Mohammad Mokhber, 68, to assume interim duties ahead of elections within 50 days.

Earlier Monday, state tv announced that "the servant of the Iranian nation, Ayatollah Ebrahim Raisi, has achieved the highest level of martyrdom" and broadcast pictures from Raisi's life as a voice recited the Koran.

The ultraconservative Raisi, 63, had been in office since 2021, during a time that has seen Iran rocked by mass protests, economic crisis deepened by US sanctions, and armed exchanges with arch enemy Israel.

Condolences flooded in from Palestinian militant group Hamas, Lebanon's Hezbollah and from Syria, all members of the so-called Axis of Resistance against Israel and its allies, at a time of high middle East tensions over the Gaza war.

Khamenei had urged Iranians Sunday, as the search was still ongoing, to "not worry" about the leadership of the Islamic republic, saying "there will be no disruption in the country's work".

Killed alongside Raisi were Foreign Minster Hossein Amir-Abdollahian.

Iran's top nuclear negotiator Ali Bagheri was appointed as acting foreign minister, government spokesman Ali Bahadori Jahromi said on state television.

A black flag was hoisted as a sign of mourning at a major Shiite shrine in city of Qom, south of Tehran.