Iranian president's helicopter crashes: no word on Ebrahim Raisi and his companions for more than seven hours
Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi's helicopter has crashed in the mountains in northwestern Iran, near the border with Azerbaijan.
Here's What We Know
On 19 May, an Iranian delegation led by President Raisi and Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian joined Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev to inaugurate a dam built between the two countries on the Arax River.
After the official events were over, the delegation was returning to Tehran, but suddenly the government helicopter disappeared from radar.
Iranian media called the incident a "hard landing" caused by a sharp deterioration in weather conditions, although many things point to a crash. About seven hours have passed since the event, but so far the helicopter has not been found and none of the people on board have made contact.
The search for the helicopter is limited by difficult weather conditions and mountainous terrain.
There is conflicting information in the media. Iran's government channels have not commented on the situation, urging citizens to pray for the health of their leader.
Source: The Associated Press
