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IRANIANS GATHERED THIS morning to mourn at the funerary procession of president Ebrahim Raisi in the northwestern city of Tabriz, the capital of East Azerbaijan province where he died unexpectedly in a helicopter crash.
The helicopter lost communication while it was on its way back to Tabriz after Raisi attended a joint inauguration of a dam with his Azeri counterpart, Ilham Aliyev, on their common border.
A massive search and rescue operation started Sunday afternoon when two other helicopters in Raisi’s convoy lost contact with his aircraft amid harsh weather conditions in the mountainous region.
State TV early Monday broke the news of his death, saying “the servant of the Iranian nation, Ayatollah Ebrahim Raisi, has achieved the highest level of martyrdom”, showing pictures of him as a voice recited the Koran.
Killed alongside the Iranian president were Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian, members of the provincial authorities of East Azerbaijan and his security team.
Iran’s military chief of staff Mohammad Bagheri on Monday ordered a probe into the cause of the crash.
Following the confirmation of Raisi’s death, international condolences poured in while people in cities across the Islamic republic gathered to mourn the late president and his companions.
Thousands of mourners holding portraits of Raisi gathered Monday at central Valiasr Square in the capital Tehran.
Supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who has ultimate authority in Iran, declared five days of national mourning and assigned vice president Mohammad Mokhber, 68, to assume interim duties ahead of elections.
State media later announced the presidential election would be held on June 28.
Iran’s top nuclear negotiator Ali Bagheri, who served as deputy to Amir-Abdollahian, was tapped to serve as the acting foreign minister.
After leaving Tabriz, Raisi’s body will arrive in Iran’s Shiite clerical centre of Qom Tuesday before being moved to Tehran.
Khamenei is due to hold prayers at a farewell ceremony in Tehran on today, ahead of major processions due to begin on Wednesday morning.
Raisi will then be taken to Southern Khorasan province on Thursday morning and later to his hometown of Mashhad, where he will be buried on Thursday evening after funerary rites.
The ultraconservative Raisi, 63, had been in office since 2021, a time during which Iran was rocked by mass protests, an economic crisis deepened by US sanctions, and armed exchanges with arch-enemy Israel.
Raisi succeeded the moderate Hassan Rouhani, at a time when the economy was battered by US sanctions over Iran’s contested nuclear programme.
Condolences flooded in from Palestinian militant group Hamas, Lebanon’s Hezbollah, and Syria, all members of the so-called “axis of resistance” against Israel and its allies, at a time of high Middle East tensions over the Gaza war.
The war in the Palestinian territory sent tensions soaring and a series of escalations led to Tehran launching hundreds of missiles and drones at Israel in April.
It came in response to an earlier air strike widely blamed on Israel that levelled Tehran’s Damascus consulate and killed two Revolutionary Guards generals.
In a speech hours before his death, Raisi emphasised Iran’s support for the Palestinians, a centrepiece of its foreign policy since the 1979 Islamic revolution.
Palestinian flags were raised along with the Iranian flags in ceremonies for Raisi across the Islamic republic on Monday.
© Agence France-Presse
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At this stage, who cares? Leo used to be a breath of fresh air but that day is long gone, so essentially this is just a popularity contest among the most detached people in society.
@Lurfic: Ends is like the drunk aunt at the end of a party who has her coat on and has been in the hall for an hour spouting drunken shoite and making stupid remarks..
@Tony Skillington: yeah, but he’s at a party full of other drunks that are no better.
@Lurfic: best comment so far.
@Lurfic: Any constructive criticism no? Just smart ass comments.
Civil war parties – with their dated philosophies and ideologies – have had their day. Yet most continue to vote for them, no matter how inept and/or corrupt they are¡
@Paul Foot: problem for a lot of people is the quality of the candidates in their areas. If you have a good independent in your area you’re one of the lucky ones. Most of us have the likes of the Healy Rae’s, Matty McGrath, John Halligan etc and the really unlucky have even worse like Lowry. If you’re a centre voter your options are very limited.
@Paul Foot: So who do the electorate get behind then? The current three largest parties are essentially ‘civil war’ parties.
@Paul Foot: Because they are thick and stupid with no education. We must have the dumbest electorate in Europe.
@Jon Snow: We get behind someone NEW.
Will someone tell leo . He needs to appeal to the country not just the media and Dublin crowd… His zen will do nothing for him even if he thinks it will.. it’s not the media that vote en masse.
@LITTLEONE: Judging by recent “polls” it seems the electorate are highly inluenced by what the media says and does
@UpThereAndHereAsWell: could you link to recent polls, thanks, showing that Leo appeals to all in Ireland and would convince the electorate to vote en masse for him.
@LITTLEONE: Up never typed that Leo appeals to all…
@Fank Pulman: double jobbing again good man. Or do always answer for random strangers on the internet…. Re read fank. Exactly what he said… In response to my comment…
Simon,Leo, Enda doesn’t really matter who leads the Irish Tory. They are all thatcherites.
@Les Behan: Yeah, just like Collins, Cosgrave, the majority of the 2nd Battalion and all of B Company IRA – all pro-treaty and no doubt Thatcherites every last one of them. Now remind us, what have you ever done for your country?
@Les Behan: Irish Whigs? What a thought?
I wouldn’t be surprised if Enda was still there at Christmas delivering his cringe message to the people!
It doesn’t matter who leads FG,corruption will still continue and nobody in the party has the bottle to do the job properly
look at those glasses 007, any cooler and his heart would stop beating. Enda there is the face of a man willing to trow you under a bus while sipping a cappuccino
“Totally zen”, what a tool !
Anyone know where I can buy any zen ?
@Morizy: Found at the bottom of spirit bottles?
None of them have a pair both scared s#=t of the current leader so what chance have they got in running this country!
@Adrian: Enda’s make up artists will find him a cool pair of sunglasses and his advisors will come up with a new buzzword to be just as cool as Leo.
Leo was also zen in job as transport and health minister doing nothing constructive or compent if becomes leader people should remember this next election
A languid disinterestedness.
The quicker the better at this stage. Enda needs to move on now the Brexit positions are set in stone.
@Fred Jensen: Brexit positions set in stone? Not by a long way…
Leo, have you ever claimed travel expenses while the Dail was on recess? I’m asking for Zen.
He’s keeping everyone guessing .but at the end of the day he’s is his own boss and in true enda style he will go when he wants to doesn’t matter if the country goes from crisis to crisis .
Is that Father Romeo Sensini in the picture?
I’m starting to dislike this idiot and those Glasses jesus.
@Morizy: Glasses jesus = ?
@Paul Foot: modern day messiah pal.
@Morizy: you mean gabriel jesus (man city)?
@Morizy: And Jesus understands lol.
He is a parasite like the rest of his party. A right kip Ireland has become under them.
Leo Varadkar says he’s ‘totally zen’ about Enda’s departure…
As long as Enda still has his Mojo back???
Now that is a Matrix image of Leo in that photo?
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