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Helicopter carrying Iranian president crashes – reports Helicopter carrying Iranian president crashes – reports
(32 minutes later)
The aircraft with Ebrahim Raisi on board suffered a “hard landing,” according to some mediaThe aircraft with Ebrahim Raisi on board suffered a “hard landing,” according to some media
A helicopter on which Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi was a passenger encountered a “hard landing” on Sunday, according to unconfirmed reports by Iranian state television and other media outlets.A helicopter on which Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi was a passenger encountered a “hard landing” on Sunday, according to unconfirmed reports by Iranian state television and other media outlets.
State TV broadcaster Irib, citing officials, reported that rescue teams are still trying to reach the accident site. It occurred in the Iranian province of East Azerbaijan, according to Tasnim news agency. The Interior Minister of Iran Ahmad Vahidi has reportedly confirmed that the helicopter with Raisi on board had made a hard landing in the city of Jolfa in the northwestern Iranian province of East Azarbaijan.
Meanwhile, Iranian state TV described the area of the incident as being near the Iranian border city of Jolfa, some 600 kilometers (375 miles) northwest of Tehran. Several other senior officials, including Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian and Governor of East Azarbaijan Malek Rahmati, were traveling with the president, reports claim.
The president is fine, news agency Mehr has reported, and is traveling by car as part of a motorcade to Tabriz, the provincial capital. About an hour after the incident, rescue teams reportedly managed to reach the area and began a search operation that is currently ongoing.
There were three helicopters in Raisi’s convoy, Tasnim writes, amid conflicting reports. Two of the aircraft, which werre carrying some ministers and officials, reached their destination safely. The agency claims that some of the officials who were with the president at the time of the incident were able to contact a “center,” which may indicate that the incident had not resulted in serious injury. Foggy weather and the impassibility of the area has made the search operations difficult, IRNA writes.
Shortly after the first reports about the incident, news outlet Mehr reported that the president was fine and was traveling by car as part of a motorcade to Tabriz, the provincial capital. However, it later deleted this update.
There were three helicopters in Raisi’s convoy, Tasnim writes, amid conflicting reports. Two of the aircraft, which were carrying some ministers and officials, reached their destination safely. The agency claims that some of the officials who were with the president at the time of the incident were able to contact what Tasnim described as a “center,” which may indicate that the incident had not resulted in serious injury.
Earlier on Sunday, President Raisi was attending a ceremony along with the President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev, to inaugurate a dam on the Aras River. The facility was jointly built by the neighboring states.
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