Breaking from #CNN: Helicopter carrying #Iran president, ministers and others is down in rugged terrain in north Iran. They haven't been located so far.
https://www.cnn.com/2024/05/19/middleeast/iranian-president-raisi-helicopter-intl/index.html
Breaking from #CNN, the latest on the #Iran president's downed helicopter:
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The official Instagram account of President Ebrahim Raisi and state television urged Iranians Sunday to pray for the president and his entourage ...
"We call on fellow countrymen to pray for the wellbeing of the President and companions," a story shared on Raisi's Instagram said.
Raisi's condition is currently unknown, Iranian state news agency IRNA has reported.
Breaking from #NBCNews on the #Iran president helicopter crash:
"State TV IRIB said the helicopter belonged to the Iranian Red Crescent, which Iran's Interior Minister Ahmad Vahidi said was part of a larger convoy."
The Red Crescent is the Muslim world's version of the Red Cross. If this is accurate, then it wasn't a government helicopter, perhaps implying security wasn't as good as it might have been. Strictly my speculation.
Also from the #NBCNews article:
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While #Iran flies a range of helicopters, international sanctions have made it difficult for Tehran to obtain the required parts for them. Most of the helicopters operated by the military date back to before the 1979 Islamic Revolution.
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Upstream in the article, it says Raisi was aboard a Red Crescent helicopter, which one might think is different from a military helicopter, but I don't really know.
I found this from February 2023 ... The #Iran sports minister was injured in the crash of an Iranian Red Cresent Society helicopter. Maybe the Iranian government uses those helicopters for civilian flights, I dunno. But it suggests the copters aren't in very good shape.
If you're interested in international coverage of the #Iran president's helicopter crash, here's France 24 English out of Paris. They're pretty good about objectivity and international news.
From #NYTimes on the #Iran president's helicopter crash:
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The European Union has activated its Copernicus satellite system to offer emergency mapping services to help Iranian officials gain better visibility of the area where the crash is believed to have occurred, according to the bloc’s chief for crisis management, Janez Lenarcic. He said the E.U. had done so after a request for assistance by Iran.
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https://www.nytimes.com/live/2024/05/19/world/iran-president-helicopter-crash
From #CNN re the #Iran president's helicopter crash:
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US President Joe #Biden was briefed on the helicopter crash involving Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi, according to the White House.
Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre, accompanying Biden aboard Air Force One on Sunday, offered no other details.
I haven't found any mainstream media reports about the #Iran president helicopter crash for about an hour now. It seems that everyone is waiting for rescue teams on foot hiking to the rescue site. It's 11:00 PM in Tehran, the middle of the night, so obviously the darkness makes the hike even more difficult.
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The head of Iran’s Red Crescent Society, Pirhossein Kolivand, told state TV that search and rescue teams have not located the site of the helicopter crash after more than 10 hours of looking, and have made no contact with anyone on board. Any rumors to the contrary were false, he said. Kolivand said rescuers were using their best guesses to set the search area and had no confirmation of the exact location of the missing helicopter.
From #CNN:
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Nine people were on the helicopter that crashed in northwest #Iran on Sunday, including three officials, an imam and flight and security team members ...
The IRGC-run media outlet, Sepah, reported the nine included: Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi, Foreign Minister Hossein Amir Abdollahian; Governor of Eastern Azerbaijan province Malek Rahmati, Tabriz’s friday prayer Imam Mohammad Ali Alehashem as well as a pilot, copilot, crew chief, head of security and another bodyguard.
#Iran I'm calling it a night ... Given the time difference, I don't think we'll know any more until morning here in North America. I suspect Iran will have reached the crash site by then and we'll know their fates.
Overnight from #CNN: All aboard #Iran president's helicopter are dead. No allegations so far of foul play.
https://www.cnn.com/middleeast/live-news/raisi-iran-president-helicopter-crash-05-20-24/index.html