Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi's helicopter crash has intensified search efforts, as the Iranian military locates the crash site. According to Iranian state news agency IRNA, the military crew is en route to the identified location.
A signal from the helicopter and a mobile phone of one crew member were detected at the crash site, as reported by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps commander for East Azerbaijan province, where the crash occurred.
The crash site remained unknown for approximately 10 hours after authorities lost contact with President Raisi’s helicopter. The helicopter went down in dense fog in East Azerbaijan Province on Sunday afternoon, hindering search efforts during the day.
The overnight low temperature in the nearest city, Tabriz, is expected to be in the low 50s, but temperatures in the remote mountains where the crash occurred will likely dip closer to freezing, complicating rescue operations further.
In response, the European Union activated its rapid response mapping service to assist in locating the Iranian leader. The European Commissioner for Crisis Management announced the activation, which provides highly accurate and continuously updated information on human settlements and populations through the Global Human Settlement Layer (GHSL).
Additionally, Iran requested assistance from Turkey in the search for President Raisi’s helicopter. Turkey's disaster and emergency management ministry has dispatched a night vision search and rescue helicopter, six vehicles, and 32 mountaineer search and rescue personnel.
President Raisi was returning from a visit to Azerbaijan when the helicopter crashed in bad weather. On board were Iran’s Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian, Hojjatoleslam Al Hashem (head of the Friday prayer in Tabriz), Malek Rahmati (governor of East Azerbaijan province), and several others.
Iranian Vice President for Executive Affairs Mohsen Mansouri reported that Iranian officials had spoken to two individuals on the helicopter since the crash. Because contact was made several times shortly after the crash, it appears the incident may not have been severe.
Mansouri also mentioned that three helicopters were flying on the same route, and two lost contact with Raisi’s helicopter.
The Ministry of Communications and other security agencies have identified the incident area within a 2-kilometre radius, but adverse weather conditions have made access difficult.
The Commander of Iran’s 6th Air Force Base stated that helicopters from the 6th Combat Base of Tabriz Air Force arrived in the Varzeghan area for relief operations early Sunday. Unfortunately, these operations failed due to unfavourable weather conditions.
Rescuers are facing dense fog and extreme cold as night falls in Iran, with local time approaching 9:30 pm. The search efforts continue amid challenging weather conditions, and the nation awaits further updates on the situation.
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