Israel insists ‘it wasn’t us’ after ‘Butcher of Tehran’ Iranian president is killed in mysterious helicopter crash a month after ordering missile attack on the Jewish state while Islamic regime supports Hamas in Gaza war
Raisi, 63, was confirmed dead by Iranian media today along with Foreign Minister Hossein Amir Abdollahian and seven others. Drone footage from Iranian and Turkish news agencies revealed the helicopter had smashed apart on landing, while clips shared by the Iranian Red Crescent showed solemn rescuers carrying corpses on covered stretchers out of the forest surrounding the crash site. The incident sparked a wave of speculation as to the cause of the crash with many theorists pointing the finger at Israel. The nation is at war with Tehran-backed Hamas in Gaza, and tensions boiled over in April when Israel and Iran exchanged rounds of direct drone and missile strikes. Though Israel has not released an official statement, officials who requested anonymity batted away accusations Tel Aviv was behind the crash, telling Reuters: ‘It wasn’t us’. Iran is yet to provide any details surrounding the crash nor has it offered an explanation besides a simple statement on the poor weather conditions.
| Daily Mail Online Iranian president Ebrahim Raisi is missing in helicopter crash
Iranian president Ebrahim Raisi is feared dead after the helicopter crash near the border with Azerbaijan Sunday put his ‘life at risk’, officials confirmed.
It comes as state media claimed that allied Russia is sending a 50-man specialist mountain rescue unit to assist the search. The Russian Ministry of Emergency Situations confirmed it in a Telegram post.
Rescuers were last night struggling to locate the Iranian president after the helicopter he was travelling in crashed in bad weather.
Iranian president Ebrahim Raisi has been involved in a helicopter crash hours after posing for pictures with Azerbaijan‘s President Ilham Aliyev and rescuers are frantically trying to reach the site.
The aircraft was traveling in Iran‘s East Azerbaijan province near Jolfa, around 375 miles northwest of Tehran, when it suffered a ‘hard landing’, according to Iranian state television.
Rescuers were attempting to reach the site, but had been hampered by the poor weather conditions in the area. There had been heavy rain and fog reported with some wind.
The helicopter was one of a convoy of three and foreign minister Hossein Amirabdollahian, Friday prayer Imam Seyyed Mohammad-Ali Al-Hashem and other high-ranking officials were also reportedly on the helicopter with the president.
It comes after Iran launched a massive drone-and-missile attack on Israel amid its conflict in Gaza.