The helicopter carrying Iranian President, Ebrahim Raisi that crashed on Sunday in the northwestern part of the country is still on search.
According to Iran’s Deputy President for Executive Affairs Mohsen Mansouri, the helicopter of President Raisi and two more copters were en route to the city of Tabriz after the president and his Azerbaijani counterpart inaugurated Qiz Qalasi Dam at the border between the two countries.
Half an hour into their flight, Raisi’s helicopter lost contact with the two other copters, which prompted them to search the area.
Here are five things to know about the missing chopper.
1. The helicopter carrying President Ebrahim Raisi crashed on Sunday in the northwestern part of the country while he was returning from his visit to Azerbaijan.
2. The helicopter was carrying Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi, the country’s Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian, the governor of Iran’s East Azerbaijan province and other officials and bodyguards.
3. The helicopter went down near Jolfa, a city on the Iran-Azerbaijan border about 375 miles northwest of Tehran, the Iranian capital.
4. Rescue teams are trying to locate the Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi’s helicopter which made a hard landing, but bad weather is complicating rescue efforts.
5. IRNA News Agency disclosed that two members of President Ebrahim Raisi’s entourage have contacted rescue teams, and this shows that the air incident involving their helicopter has not been rough.
However, the Iranian Twelver Shia marja’, Ayatollah Khamenei has urged Iranians not to be worried, he said, “There will be no disruption to the operations of the country”.