This is a breaking news alert…
A helicopter reportedly carrying Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi has crashed amidst bad weather.
Here’s what the search efforts looked like:
HAPPENING NOW: Iranian rescue teams are currently searching for the helicopter carrying President Ebrahim Raisi which reportedly crashed on Sunday.
The teams could be seen searching through thick fog on mountain roads and hillsides.
Iranian state media is currently calling on… pic.twitter.com/l3wGTnsnbv
— Collin Rugg (@CollinRugg) May 19, 2024
🔥🚨DEVELOPING: The weather in the location that Iran’s President helicopter crashed has made rescue efforts extremely difficult. This weather reminds me of the weather Kobe Bryant was flown in, from what I’ve learned flying a helicopter in strong fog is very dangerous. pic.twitter.com/sJJSQWFRTr
— Dom Lucre | Breaker of Narratives (@dom_lucre) May 19, 2024
Many presume the President is dead:
🔥🚨BREAKING NEWS: It has been over 3 hours since the helicopter carrying Iran’s president crashed. There is no doubt that there was several lines of communication on the helicopter and persons. At this point every media source is unfortunately awaiting for confirmation on what… pic.twitter.com/7gVF2sXcx8
— Dom Lucre | Breaker of Narratives (@dom_lucre) May 19, 2024
This is a very fluid, dynamic and confusing time as not many details are yet known.
However, the people of Iran appear very happy at the potential death of the President:
Iranian citizens are setting off fireworks amid the potential death of the President Ebrahim Raisi.
There’s about to be a whole other conflict in the Middle East if this turns out to be true.
— Ryan Fournier (@RyanAFournier) May 19, 2024
The incident occurred during his visit to the northwest border area of Iran, and search and rescue operations are currently underway. However, there has been no confirmed information regarding the status of President Raisi or any other passengers on the helicopter. The situation remains fluid, and updates are expected as more information becomes available from the search and rescue teams.
Some reports are claiming President Raisi is dead, but that has not yet been confirmed:
🇮🇷🇮🇱#BREAKING: Israeli Media Reports That The Iranian President is Dead pic.twitter.com/t5i2H6vcb6
— Censored Men (@CensoredMen) May 19, 2024
Fox News had these details:
A helicopter carrying Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi experienced a “hard landing” on Sunday, according to Iranian state media.
Iranian media, according to multiple reports, said rescue teams were dispatched to the site, though there have been multiple conflicting reports regarding the incident.
Search teams later told Iranian state TV that officials have found the helicopter and made contact with one passenger and one crew member.
Raisi was traveling in Iran’s East Azerbaijan province near the city of Jolfa at the time of the incident. Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian and the governor of the East Azerbaijan province were traveling with the president, along with other officials.
ADVERTISEMENT“The esteemed president and company were on their way back aboard some helicopters and one of the helicopters was forced to make a hard landing due to the bad weather and fog,” Interior Minister Ahmad Vahidi said in comments aired on state TV.
“Various rescue teams are on their way to the region but because of the poor weather and fogginess it might take time for them to reach the helicopter,” he added.
“The region is a bit (rugged) and it’s difficult to make contact. We are waiting for rescue teams to reach the landing site and give us more information,” he continued.
One local government official used the word “crash” to describe the incident, but he acknowledged to an Iranian newspaper that he had yet to reach the site himself.
Meanwhile, the Israel War Room posted this to Twitter:
🚁
— Israel War Room (@IsraelWarRoom) May 19, 2024
While that account has a large following, it is not confirmed to be related to any official Israel state business, nor has any report been confirmed linking Israel to the downing of this helicopter .
We will continue to monitor this story and bring you updates as we have them.
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