Raeisi has been martyred after a helicopter carrying him and his entourage crashed in the northwest of the country.
Raisi’s helicopter, along with two more copters, was en route to Tabriz City on Sunday, May 19, 2024.
The chopper crashed in the Varzaqan region in East Azarbaijan Province, northwest of Iran.
The late president was heading to Tabriz, northwest of Iran, after returning from an Iran-Azarbaijan border area.
He had inaugurated the Qiz Qalasi Dam at the border earlier in the day.
The helicopter experienced a "hard landing" in remote and mountainous terrain, state media reported.
Dense fog and heavy rain hindered search efforts, but on Monday authorities found the crash site and announced that Raeisi and everyone else on board the helicopter had lost their lives.
Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian, East Azarbaijan Province’s Governor Malek Rahmati, and Mehdi Mousavi, the head of Raisi’s guard team, were also on board the crashed aircraft. Mohammad Ali Al-e-Hashem, the representative of the Leader of the Islamic Revolution in the province also accompanied them.
Born in 1960 in Mashhad, Iran's second biggest city and home to the country's holiest Shia Muslim shrine, Raeisi started attending a seminary in the holy city of Qom at the age of 15.
The figure became the deputy prosecutor in Tehran when he was only 25.
After the Islamic Revolution in 1979, he joined the judiciary and served as a prosecutor in several cities.
Raisi served as the first deputy of the Judiciary from 2004 to 2014, working under two heads of the judiciary. In this capacity, he was responsible for overseeing the organization and administration of the judiciary. From 2014 to March 2015, he also served as Iran's Attorney General.
In March 2016, Raeisi was appointed custodian of Astan Quds Razavi by the Leader of the Islamic Revolution. During his three-year tenure, he implemented significant measures to enhance services at the holy shrine of Imam Reza.
On March 7, 2019, Raeisi was appointed head of the judiciary by order of Ayatollah Khamenei. During his tenure, the figure made significant strides in judicial reform, addressing economic corruption decisively and enhancing judicial efficiency, earning praise from Ayatollah Khamenei.
When Raeisi announced his candidacy for the 2021 presidential election, he declared that he had come as an independent to the stage to make changes in the executive management of the country and to fight poverty, corruption, humiliation, and discrimination.
In the June 2021 presidential election, Raeisi secured over 18 million votes, becoming the 13th President of Iran.
The Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Khamenei met with Raeisi and his cabinet on August 30, 2023, on Government Week.
During the meeting, the Leader praised the administration. He praised the 13th administration for being actively present among the people.
He also lauded the administration for their simple lifestyle, revolutionary mindset, jihadi spirit, and their recruitment of young people in various managerial positions.
In addressing the administration, the Leader said, "Living like the people is very valuable and should be continued.”
“The simple lifestyle and the reduction of formalities in the personal and working behavior of the administration, especially about the President himself, is impressive to me.”
In a message issued on Monday morning, Ayatollah Khamenei expressed his great sadness over the death of President Raeisi in the incident that took place in Iran’s East Azarbaijan province a day earlier.
In the message, the Leader described Raeisi as a hard-working cleric and a popular president who dedicated his life to serving the people of Iran, the country, and Islam.
“In this bitter tragedy, the Iranian nation lost a warm-hearted, humble, and valued servant,” said Ayatollah Khamenei, adding that President Raeisi never stopped his hard and round-the-clock work for the people of Iran despite being faced with criticisms of ill-wishers.
Iran’s Cabinet has issued a statement following the martyrdom of the President and his entourage.
“The indefatigable and hard-working president made the ultimate sacrifice on the path of serving his nation.”
The statement went on to note that the figure always took steps to help the country make progress in all fields.
Reported by Tohid Mahmoudpour
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