The Iranian Mehr News Agency deleted its publication that reported, “Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi is fine and has returned in a convoy of cars to the city of Tabriz,” following reports of an emergency landing due to severe fog and bad weather conditions.
Search efforts are still underway, and the current status of the President and his envoy, including Foreign Minister Abdolahian, is unknown.
🚨DEBUNKED – IRANIAN PRESIDENT AND FM ARE "OK" AFTER HELICOPTER EMERGENCY LANDING
The Iranian Mehr News Agency deleted its publication that reported, “Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi is fine and has returned in a convoy of cars to the city of Tabriz,” following reports of an… pic.twitter.com/9gyzzmfe8Q
— Mario Nawfal (@MarioNawfal) May 19, 2024
HAPPENING NOW: Iranian rescue teams are currently searching for the helicopter carrying President Ebrahim Raisi which reportedly crashed on Sunday.
The teams could be seen searching through thick fog on mountain roads and hillsides.
Iranian state media is currently calling on… pic.twitter.com/l3wGTnsnbv
— Collin Rugg (@CollinRugg) May 19, 2024
The 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 reports by Iranian state television and other media outlets.
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.
Several other senior officials, including Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian and Governor of East Azarbaijan Malek Rahmati, were traveling with the president, reports claim.
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.
