Iranian president Ebrahim Raisi killed in helicopter crash

On Sunday, May 19, 2024, Iranian president, Ebrahim Raisi, and 4 other high ranking Iranian leaders were killed in a helicopter crash that landed near the town of Varzaqan. On Monday May 20, 2024, it was confirmed that Raisi, and later the others on board, were dead. The others onboard, also confirmed dead, were the Iranian foreign minister, Hossein Amirabdollahian, the governor general of the Iranian province of East Azerbaijan, Malek Rahmati, the Supreme-Leader’s representative in East Azerbaijan, Mohammad Ali Ale-Hashem, and the head of security, Brigadier General Mohammad Mehdi Mousavi.

Varzaqan entrance

Raisi and the others were on a mission to Azerbaijan, to celebrate the inaguaration of the Azerbaijiani president, Ilham Aliyev. After this, they departed with the intention of reaching Tabriz. It was later reported that there was “bad weather conditions and fog in the area” by Interior Minister Ahmad Vahidi. The aircraft was “forced to make a hard landing” near the Iranian town of Varzaqan, in the province of East Azerbaijian. Due to heavy fog in the area, rescue efforts were significantly hampered. Early May 20, Turkish authorities released drone footage of the fire caused by the helicopter crash. Soliders, upon reaching the location of the flames, stated “There it is, we found it.” A state TV later said that “There is no sign of life from people on board.”

It is unknown what the cause of the crash was. Iranian authorities have not released any detailed statement regarding the cause. Iran has stated that the cause was due to a “technical failure”. Meir Javedanfar, an Iranian-Israeli professor, said that there was little possibly Israel killed Raisi because he “ultimately so replaceable”. Another theory is that Iranian forces assassinated them. This theory has been neither confirmed nor denied. However, this theory is considered likely by many, as it is common for those ranked high in dictatorships to die in similar accidents.

Iranian supreme leader, Ali Khamenei, announced “five days of public mourning” and offered his “condolences to the dear people of Iran,”. In spite of the ongoing tensions between Israel and Iran, Raisi and the others deaths are of little strategic benefit to their deaths, stating that Raisi’s replacement will be little different. According to the New York Times, Raisi was “a weak figurehead who had little influence on Iran’s foreign policy”. Furthermore, it said, “the real power in Tehran lay with the supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, and the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps.”

Raisi was expected to succeed Khamenei, who it is thought will die in the next few years. Currently, the vice president and currently acting president of Iran is Mohammad Mokhber. Under the Iranian constitution, new elections must be held within 50 days. These and other elections in Iran are generally not considered to be democratic of fair, with many candidates barred entry arbitrarily or assassinated.

The crash and death of Raisi, who is they called “The Butcher of Tehran”, sparked celebration from many Iranian civilians, with people celebrating with fireworks and drinks. Indeed, said Iranian-American journalist Masih Alinejad, “I think this is the only crash in history where everyone is worried if someone survived,”. They continued with “Happy World Helicopter Day!” Many videos and reports have been shown of Iranian civilians celebrating the news, joking and sharing memes about online. Amongst other activities, significant amounts of fireworks were lit during the celebrations. It is expected that Iran will respond as they generally do to disapproval of the government or former or current government officials, with mass-murders and mass-arrests.

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