[ May 1, 2026 ]
Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi, a hard-line protege of the country’s supreme leader who helped oversee the mass executions of thousands in 1988 and later led the country as it enriched uranium near weapons-grade levels, launched a major attack on Israel and experienced mass protests, has died. He was 63.
Raisi’s death, along with the foreign minister and other officials in a helicopter crash Sunday in northwestern Iran, came as Iran struggles with internal dissent and its relations with the wider world. A cleric first, Raisi once kissed the Quran, the Islamic holy book, before the United Nations and spoke more like a preacher than a statesman when addressing the world.
Iranian President Raisi’s Helicopter Crashes in Landing, Rescue Operation Ongoing
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Body of Iran’s President Raisi, dubbed the ‘Butcher of Tehran’ seen wrapped in a blanket as it is recovered from the scene of the helicopter crash.
Ebrahim Raisi oversaw the executions of thousands of civilians during his political career. pic.twitter.com/jjQVpfmGbn
— Oli London (@OliLondonTV) May 20, 2024
🚨Breaking: According to Iranian News Agency a helicopter carrying the Iranian President Ebrahim made a hard landing near the city of Verzegan, near the border with Azerbaijan.
The four Iranian officials who were on board the helicopter:
Ebrahim Raisi – President of Iran… pic.twitter.com/khbITMGl0C
— Real Mac Report (@RealMacReport) May 19, 2024
In Tehran, they're celebrating Raisi's death
At Columbia and UCLA, they're mourning it
— Daniel Greenfield – "Hang Together or Separately" (@Sultanknish) May 19, 2024
“I think this is the only crash in history where everyone is worried if someone survived.”
“Happy World Helicopter Day!”
Iranian social media is flooded with jokes about Ebrahim Raisi’s helicopter crash. This is how oppressed people fight back through humor.
— Masih Alinejad 🏳️ (@AlinejadMasih) May 19, 2024
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DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi, the country’s foreign minister and several other officials were found dead on Monday, hours after their helicopter crashed in a foggy, mountainous region of the country’s northwest, state media reported. The crash comes as the Middle East remains unsettled by the Israel-Hamas war, during which Raisi, who was 63, under Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei launched an unprecedented drone-and-missile attack on Israel just last month.
Khamenei announced Monday that Iran’s first vice president, Mohammad Mokhber, would serve as the country’s acting president until elections are held.
During Raisi’s term in office, Iran enriched uranium closer than ever to weapons-grade levels, further escalating tensions with the West as Tehran also supplied bomb-carrying drones to Russia for its war in Ukraine and armed militia groups across the region.
Meanwhile, Iran has faced years of mass protests against its Shiite theocracy over the ailing economy and women’s rights — making the moment that much more sensitive for Tehran and the future of the country.
Among the dead was Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian, 60. The helicopter also carried the governor of Iran’s East Azerbaijan province, a senior cleric from Tabriz, three crew members and a Revolutionary Guard official, the state-run IRNA news agency reported. IRNA said the crash killed eight people in all, including three crew members, aboard the Bell helicopter, which Iran purchased in the early 2000s.
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