Tehran, May 20, (dpa/GNA) – Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei named First Vice President Mohammad Mokhber as acting president in the wake of hardliner Ebrahim Raisi’s death in a helicopter crash and also ordered five days of national mourning.
President Raisi and foreign minister Hossein Amirabdollahian were among the nine who died when their helicopter crashed in Iran’s mountainous north-west during bad weather.
Khamenei described Raisi as “tireless” and said Iranians had lost a “valuable and sincere person.”
Khamenei also tasked Mokhber with organizing elections within 50 days. Deputy Foreign Minister Ali Bagheri, the top negotiator in the nuclear talks with the West, was appointed acting foreign minister.
Mokhber had chaired a Cabinet meeting on Sunday evening after the chopper went missing over East Azerbaijan Province. All nine people on board the aircraft have been identified, Iranian media said on Monday.
Reactions to Raisi’s death poured in. Iran’s allies offered their condolences while Western leaders have stayed conspicuously silent so far.
Raisi, who was 63, was accused of being responsible for countless of arrests and executions of political dissidents in 1988 when he served as chief prosecutor for Tehran. He later held top positions in the judiciary.
Russian President Vladimir Putin called Raisi a “true friend” who was admired at home and abroad, while Chinese President Xi Jinping said Raisi’s “unfortunate death is a great loss to the Iranian people and the Chinese people have also lost a good friend.”
European Council President Charles Michel was one of the few Western leaders to publicly reach out when he offered his sympathy on behalf of the European Union. Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni also expressed her solidarity.
During Raisi’s time in office, Iran deepened its economic and military cooperation with China and Russia. Relations with the West deteriorated due to the dispute over Iran’s nuclear programme and Tehran’s support for Russia’s war on Ukraine.
The West also accused the Iranian leadership of human rights violations, especially in the wake of the death of Kurdish woman Mahsa Amini while in the custody of the religious police. Her death sparked mass street protests that were brutally crushed by security forces in 2022.
On Monday morning, state news agency IRNA published images taken by a drone showing the debris of the charred helicopter on a steep slope in the middle of the forest.
Raisi and Amirabdollahian were travelling back from a meeting with the president of neighbouring Azerbaijan, Ilham Aliyev, when their helicopter disappeared from radar in dense fog on Sunday afternoon.
The Iranians had helped to inaugurate a dam in Azerbaijan that was jointly built by the sides. The entourage then made its way back to Iran in a total of three helicopters. But while the other two helicopters arrived safely, the president’s never returned.
Aliyev expressed his shock at Raisi’s death. “The Iranian people have lost an outstanding statesman who served his country with dedication and commitment throughout his life,” he said.
Speculation arose as to whether the crash was due to bad weather, a technical defect in the helicopter or even sabotage. Iranian officials have yet to give a cause.
Poor weather conditions had made the search for the crash site arduous overnight. The remote, muddy route was inaccessible by road, forcing rescue teams to proceed on foot, according to local reports.
Many of Iran’s aircraft date back to the time before the Islamic Revolution of 1979, when the country maintained close relations with the United States.
The disaster is almost sure to plunge the Islamic theocracy into a fresh political crisis. Due to a lack of alternatives, the search for a long-term successor to Raisi is likely to be difficult.
Raisi was sworn in as Iran’s president in August 2021. He won the election with just under 62% of the vote as the leading candidate of the political hardliners and the preferred candidate and protégé of Khamenei.
Despite the title of president Raisi was only number two in the country’s power structure as Khamenei functions as the head of state and has the final say in all strategic matters. He is also commander-in-chief of Iran’s armed forces.
Experts had tipped Raisi as a possible successor to Khamenei, who turned 85 in April.
While government supporters mourned the loss of the statesmen, many Iranians expressed their glee on social media.
Raisi’s government has been criticized for years for its arch-conservative values, the suppression of civil rights and the severe economic crisis in Iran.