May 19, 2024 helicopter crash involving Iranian president

Military crews are heading to the exact location of the crash site of the helicopter carrying Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi, a military commander in the region said, according to state news agency IRNA.

A signal was received from the helicopter and the mobile phone of one of the crew members at the crash site, according to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps commander for East Azerbaijan province, where the crash occurred.

Iran has requested assistance from Turkey in the search for Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi's crashed helicopter, the Turkish disaster and emergency management ministry said Sunday.

Iran requested a night vision search and rescue helicopter, the ministry said. 

Turkey is also sending six vehicles and 32 mountaineer search and rescue personnel to Iran, according to the ministry.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan said on X that his government is "following the incident closely, in full contact and coordination with the Iranian authorities."

"On behalf of my nation, I convey my get well wishes to our neighbor, friend and brother Iranian people and government, and I hope to receive good news from Mr. President and his delegation as soon as possible," Erdoğan added.

Remember: It's about 11 p.m. local time in the remote, mountainous East Azerbaijan Province where the president's helicopter went down. Even in daylight, dense fog in the area had hindered the search effort.

CNN's Nechirvan Mando and Gul Tuysuz contributed to this post.

Hamas issued a statement expressing "great concern" after a helicopter carrying Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi and other Iranian officials crashed on Sunday.

Details about the crash are still murky, and Hamas expressed "solidarity" toward the president and the "brotherly Iranian people."

Some context: Tensions remain acute across the Middle East as Israel wages war in Gaza against the Palestinian militant group Hamas, which is an Iranian ally.

Meanwhile, a decades-long shadow conflict between Israel and Iran erupted into the open in April, when Iran launched an unprecedented attack on Israel. Tehran said the assault was retaliation for a deadly suspected Israeli airstrike on Iran’s consulate in Syria. The exchange has only further inflamed tensions in the Middle East.

Iranian proxy groups — including the Houthis in Yemen and Hezbollah in Lebanon — have also been involved in escalating skirmishes in the region.

Iranian officials have spoken to two people on the same helicopter as President Ebrahim Raisi since it crashed Sunday, Iranian Vice President for Executive Affairs Mohsen Mansouri told the country's semi-official FARS news agency. 

Three helicopters were flying on the same route before two lost contact with Raisi's helicopter, Mansouri said.

"The Ministry of Communications and other security agencies have identified the incident area within a 2-kilometer radius. Due to weather conditions, access to the area is challenging," he said. 

Leaders across the Middle East and beyond are expressing their sympathies and concern about Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi and other officials, after their helicopter crashed into the mountainous East Azerbaijan Province on Sunday.

Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei expressed concern and said he is praying for Raisi in his first comments since the crash, according to state news agency IRNA:

Despite rising tensions between Pakistan and Iran following a series of strikes early this year, Pakistan's top leaders both sent prayers and best wishes to the entire Iranian nation.

Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari, wrote on X, "My heartfelt prayers & good wishes for the well-being & safety of President Raisi so that he may continue to serve the Iranian nation."

Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, wrote on X, "Waiting with great anxiety for good news that all is well. Our prayers and best wishes are with Hon.President Raisi and the entire Iranian nation."

Here's what other leaders are saying:

The exact site where Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi's helicopter crashed Sunday has still not been located, military officials involved in the rescue operation said.

Officials have said rescuers are facing dense fog and extreme cold as the night grows later in Iran. It's currently just before 9:30 p.m. local time.

The European Union is activating the Copernicus EMS satellite mapping service in response to the crash, following an "Iranian request for assistance," European Commissioner for Crisis Management Janez Lenarčič said in a post on X.

The Iranian Constitution mandates that in the case of the death of the president, the first vice president shall assume, with the approval of the Supreme Leader, the powers and functions of the president. 

First Vice President Mohammad Mokhber would assume the role if the current president dies and Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei approves. Officials said earlier that Mokhber was en route to the area where the president's helicopter went down.

Additionally, the constitution mandates the three heads of the branches of government — the vice president, speaker of the parliament and the head of the judiciary — must arrange for an election to choose a new leader within 50 days of the vice president assuming the role of acting president.

Keep in mind: Iran's supreme leader serves as the final arbiter of domestic and foreign affairs in the Islamic Republic, dwarfing the powers of the country's president.

Unlike his predecessor, the moderate former President Hassan Rouhani, Raisi has fostered a close alliance with Khamenei. Many Iranians believe Raisi is being groomed to be elevated to the supreme leadership.

US President Joe Biden was briefed on the helicopter crash involving Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi, according to the White House.

Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre, accompanying Biden aboard Air Force One on Sunday, offered no other details.

Rescuers have not reached the crash site of a helicopter carrying Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi and Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian, and have no update on their status, according to Iran government spokesperson Ali Bahadori Jahromi. 

In a statement on X, Jahromi said rescue teams are "experiencing difficult and complicated conditions," and acknowledged it is "the right of the people and the media to be aware of the latest news about the president's helicopter accident, but according to the coordinates of the accident site and the weather conditions, there is 'no' new news until now."