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A helicopter carrying Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi went down in a ‘hard landing’
In this photo released by the Iranian Presidency Office, President Ebrahim Raisi attends a meeting with his Azeri counterpart Ilham Aliyev during the inauguration ceremony of dam of Qiz Qalasi, or Castel of Girl in Azeri, at the border of Iran and Azerbaijan, Sunday, May 19, 2024.
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In this photo released by the Iranian Presidency Office, President Ebrahim Raisi attends a meeting with his Azeri counterpart Ilham Aliyev during the inauguration ceremony of dam of Qiz Qalasi, or Castel of Girl in Azeri, at the border of Iran and Azerbaijan, Sunday, May 19, 2024.
AP
Iranian state media is reporting that a helicopter carrying President Ebrahim Raisi and other top officials suffered a “hard landing” Sunday, with no immediate word on casualties.
The state-run IRNA media outlet reported that the aircraft carrying Raisi, Foreign Minister Hossein Amir Abdollahian and other senior officials went down in northwestern Iran as they returned from an event along Iran’s border with Azerbaijan.
Two of the three helicopters on the trip reportedly reached their destination safely, but crews were still searching for the one carrying Raisi, according to state media.
The Fars News Agency posted what it said was video footage of rescue teams that had been dispatched to the area of the helicopter’s “hard landing.”
But IRNA said “[f]oggy weather and the impassability of the area” could make rescue efforts difficult.
Earlier in the day, the Iranian government’s X account posted an image of Raisi seated next to Azerbaijan’s president, Ilham Aliyev, at the opening of a dam along the border between the two countries.