Iranian media reported that Iran’s President Ebrahim Raisi died in a helicopter accident in East Azerbaijan province on Sunday. The helicopter transporting Iran’s President Raisi and his foreign minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian vanished over a mountainous area.
Iran’s state television reported that there were no indications of life from the helicopter passengers. The state TV reported that upon discovering the helicopter, there was no indication that the passengers were alive.
This event comes amid increased tensions in the area, especially due to the Gaza conflict and recent actions by Iran towards Israel. President Raisi, in office since 2021, has promised unwavering backing for Palestine, a position he reiterated in his recent speech at the dam inauguration.
People calling it “assination by Israel”
“Iran’s President Ebrahim Raisi was killed in a helicopter accident. I believe this may have been a planned murder. We will determine whether or not Iran conducts a comprehensive investigation” – on Monday, a user on social media expressed their suspicion that Israel is responsible for this.
Iran President Ebrahim Raisi died in helicopter crash
I suspect this was an assassination
We will see if Iran will investigate throughly
I suspect Israel is behind this pic.twitter.com/ukhVJigBDt
— Furkan Gözükara (@GozukaraFurkan) May 20, 2024
A report in the Economist suggested that due to the long-standing hostility between Iran and Israel, some Iranians have theorized that Israel may have been involved in the crash. This theory is becoming more popular due to recent developments, such as Israel’s killing of an Iranian commander in Damascus and Iran’s retaliatory missile attack. The Mossad, Israel’s intelligence service, is famous for its activities against Iranian interests, but it has never attacked a
Israel, on the other hand, has refuted any connection. According to Reuters, an Israeli official who asked to remain unidentified stated that they were not responsible.
Why some Iranians are celebrating the death of president?
Minoo Majidi’s daughters are part of those commemorating his sudden death, which occurred as a result of the security measures taken after Mahsa Amini‘s passing in September 2022. Majidi’s daughters posted a video on social media, toasting to the president’s demise.
Not long after that, Mersedeh Shahinkar and Sima Moradbeigi, two more Iranian women, reacted to Raisi’s death by dancing and smiling. Shahinkar lost his vision due to the security forces’ actions during the 2022 protests, while Moradbeigi’s arm became unusable after an armed guard shot her at close range.
Various videos circulating on social media purportedly depict people in Tehran celebrating Raisi’s death with fireworks, though the authenticity of these clips remains unverified.
