An Iranian state media report said a helicopter carrying President Ebrahim Raisi of Iran experienced a “hard landing” on Sunday, but details were not provided right away.
Raisi was journeying through the province of East Azerbaijan in Iran. State TV reported that the event occurred close to Jolfa, a city located on the frontier with Azerbaijan, approximately 600 kilometers northwest of Tehran, the capital of Iran.
According to the state-run IRNA news agency, “Raisi was accompanied by Iran’s Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian, the governor of Iran’s East Azerbaijan province, and other officials during the travel”. A local government official referred to the event as a “crash” and admitted to an Iranian newspaper that he had not yet visited the site.
Rescue teams dispatched
Ahmad Vahidi, the Interior Minister, informed state television that multiple rescue teams were working to reach the site of the incident, however, it could be delayed by fog and adverse weather conditions.
Vahidi verified that there was radio communication with the helicopter, but provided no additional information and indicated that communication links have been disrupted.
IRNA, the state-run news website, reported that the president’s helicopter is thought to have crashed in the Dizmar Protected Area, which is a wooded and hilly region.
There has been no verification regarding the specific helicopter that was transporting the president and his team.
Iran has a range of helicopters in operation, but purchasing new aircraft or acquiring parts has been challenging due to years of sanctions.
Several military aircraft currently in use in Iran were manufactured before the country’s revolution in 1979.
In Tehran, Iran, Al Jazeera’s Resul Serdar stated on Sunday that the helicopters and planes in use are very old.
He clarified that’s the reason why these accidents happen often in Iran.
Serdar mentioned that it might require several hours for the rescue teams to arrive at the crash site.
