Iran
The empty seats of Iran's late president Ebrahim Raisi (L) and foreign minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian during a cabinet meeting held on May 20, 2024. Photo: Iranian presidency / handout
ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei on Monday assigned Vice President Mohammed Mokhber to assume interim duties until a new election to replace President Ebrahim Raisi after he died in a helicopter crash. Top nuclear negotiator Ali Bagheri Kani will serve as acting foreign minister.
“According to Article 131 of the constitution, Mr [Mohammed] Mokhber assumes the role of managing the executive branch and is obligated, together with the heads of the legislative and judiciary branches, to arrange for the election of a new president within a maximum of fifty days,” Khamenei said on X.
Iranian state media on Sunday confirmed the death of Raisi after a helicopter carrying him and his companions crashed in the Varzaghan region of East Azerbaijan province.
Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian, East Azerbaijan governor Malik Rahmati, and Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei’s representative to East Azerbaijan Mohammad Ali Ale-Hashem were also on board the helicopter and confirmed dead.
Iranian government spokesperson Ali Bahadori Jahromi told state television that following the death of Amir-Abdollahian, Deputy Foreign Minister Bagheri will serve as the acting foreign minister.
The crash in East Azerbaijan province occurred in a mountainous area with dense fog and bad weather conditions, where the helicopter made a “hard landing.” Efforts of rescue teams to reach the site were complicated.
Khamenei on Monday announced five days of national mourning in Iran.
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