Following helicopter crash yesterday
Iraqi leaders express condolences for death of Iranian president Ebrahim Raisi
NEWSROOM– Iraqi leaders have expressed condolences after a helicopter carrying Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi and several high-ranking officials crashed, killing all nine people aboard, including President Raisi.
In addition to thee president, the crash claimed the lives of the Foreign Minister, the Governor of East Azerbaijan, the Imam of Tabriz, and members of their security and flight crew.
The Iraqi President expressed condolences following the deaths of Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi and several officials in a helicopter crash. Abdullatif Rashid posted via X (formerly known as Twitter): “With hearts filled with faith in God’s will and destiny, we received the news of the death of the esteemed Iranian President Ayatollah Seyed Ebrahim Raisi and several officials in the painful helicopter crash.”
“On this sad occasion, we extend our deepest condolences and sympathy to the Supreme Leader of the Islamic Republic, Ayatollah Seyed Ali Khamenei, and to the leadership and people of the Islamic Republic, affirming Iraq’s solidarity with the Iranian people in this difficult time,” he stated.
Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia Al-Sudani also expressed his condolences today to Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei and the Iranian people following the deaths of Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi and his accompanying delegation.
In a statement from his office, the Prime Minister said: “With deep sorrow and great sadness, we received the news of the deaths of the President of the Islamic Republic of Iran, Seyed Ebrahim Raisi, Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian, and their companions, in the unfortunate helicopter crash in northern Iran.”
“We extend our heartfelt condolences and sympathy to the Supreme Leader of the Islamic Republic, Seyed Ali Khamenei, and to Iran, its government, and its people. We express our solidarity with the brotherly Iranian people and with the officials of the Islamic Republic in this painful tragedy,” he said.
Nechirvan Barzani, president of the Kurdistan Region, issued a statement today expressing his condolences over the deaths of Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi and others.
In his message, Barzani said, “We are deeply saddened by the tragic news of the helicopter crash that resulted in the deaths of the President of the Islamic Republic of Iran, Ebrahim Raisi, Foreign Minister Hossein Amir Abdollahian, and their companions.”
“During this challenging period, we offer our heartfelt condolences to the Supreme Leader of the Islamic Republic, His Excellency Sayyed Ali Khamenei, as well as to the leadership, government, and people of Iran, and the families affected by this tragedy,” Barzani added.
“The passing of President Raisi is an immense tragedy and a profound loss for the Islamic Republic of Iran, its people, and its friends. Nevertheless, we have faith that the noble people of Iran and the Islamic Republic will overcome this immense loss,” he concluded.
Ebrahim Raisi was born in 1960 in the Noghan district of Mashhad. He came from a religious family and is survived by two daughters. At the age of 15, he left Mashhad to pursue religious studies at the Qom Seminary.
Raisi held a doctorate in private law and Islamic jurisprudence. After the revolution, he quickly rose through the ranks of the Iranian judiciary. In 1980, he became the Deputy Prosecutor of Karaj. By 1985, he was the Deputy Prosecutor of Tehran and was appointed as Tehran’s Prosecutor in 1989.
In 2004, Raisi became the First Deputy Chief Justice of Iran. By 2014, he took on the role of Iran’s Attorney General.
Raisi ran for the presidency in 2017, securing 38% of the vote but ultimately losing. In 2019, he was appointed as the Chief Justice of Iran by the Supreme Leader. In 2021, amidst the COVID-19 pandemic, Raisi was elected as the President of Iran.
