Iranians mourn Raisi, others who died in helicopter crash
From Tabriz, Raisi's body was taken to the Shia clerical centre of Qom before shifting to Tehran, where huge banners hailing him as ‘the martyr of service’ have appeared around the city
Tens of thousands mourned Iran's President Ebrahim Raisi on Tuesday after his death in a helicopter crash, amid political uncertainty ahead of an election for his successor next month.
Raisi and seven members of his entourage, including Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian, were killed when their aircraft came down on a fogshrouded mountainside in northern Iran on Sunday.
Waving Iranian ags and portraits of the late President, mourners marched in the northwestern city of Tabriz, where Raisi's helicopter had been headed when it crashed. Black-clad mourners beat their chests as they walked behind a lorry carrying the co ns of Raisi and those who died with him.
"We, the members of the government, who had the honour to serve this beloved President, the hardworking President,
Soldiers carry the coin of President Ebrahim Raisi during a funeral ceremony in Tabriz in Iran on Tuesday.
pledge to our dear people and leader to follow the path of these martyrs," Interior Minister Ahmad Vahidi said in a speech.
From Tabriz, Raisi's body was taken to the Shia clerical centre of Qom later on Tuesday before being moved to Tehran, where huge banners hailing him as "the martyr of service" have appeared around the city.
In Qom, the procession moved toward the city's main shrine of Massoumeh as mourners waved the
Shia red ag and the yellow ag of the Iran-backed Lebanese Hezbollah group. The o cial IRNA news agency said the funerals in Iran were attended by "hundreds of thousands" of people.
Fight to Tabriz
Contact with Raisi's helicopter was lost in bad weather on the return ight to Tabriz after the inauguration of a joint dam project on Iran's border with Azerbaijan, in a ceremony with his Azeri counterpart Ilham Aliyev.
A huge search and rescue operation was launched, and state television announced his death early on Monday.
Over pictures of Raisi and as a voice recited Koranic verses, the broadcaster said "the servant of the Iranian nation, Ayatollah Ebrahim Raisi, has achieved the highest level of martyrdom".
As well as the President and Foreign Minister, provincial o cials, members of Raisi's security team and the helicopter crew all died in the crash. Armed forces chief of sta Mohammad Bagheri ordered an investigation into the crash as Iranians nationwide mourned Raisi and his entourage.
Tens of thousands of people gathered in the capital's Valiasr Square on Monday. Iran's highest security body, the Supreme National Security Council, said the "vast presence" of mourners at the funeral "guaranteed the stability and national security of the Islamic republic".
Being Iran’s President is not easy. The highest elected o ce in the country is not the most powerful one. The President is answerable to the Supreme Leader, who is appointed by a body of senior clerics. The President’s main responsibility is to run the day-today a airs of the country, especially its crisis-ridden, sanctions-hit economy. The President also has to run a delicate foreign policy in a hostile region.
Ebrahim Raisi, the 63year-old former judiciary chief who became Iran’s eighth President in 2021, was doing just that, until May 19, 2024, when he was killed in a helicopter crash. A hardline cleric who was seen as a potential successor to the Supreme Leader, Raisi’s death comes as a massive shock for the Islamic Republic.
Immediate priority
Iran faces three broad challenges in the wake of Raisi’s death. Tehran’s immediate priority is to put in place an orderly transition
When the country is preparing to hold a snap election, the establishment would like to see not just the election of another conservative as President but also a high turnout.
Larger transition
Secondly, Raisi’s abrupt death did disrupt Iran’s bigger transition plans as well. Mr. Khamenei, the most powerful man in Iran, is 85 years old and ailing. Many Iran watchers saw Raisi as an ideal candidate to succeed Mr. Khamenei. Raisi was relatively young, ideologically committed, had the blessings of the establishment and successfully negotiated between the di erent branches of the state and made his standing stronger ever since his election. But now, Iran has to start from scratch to nd Mr. Khamenei’s successor. Di erent names are being added to the list, including Mojtaba Khamenei, the son of the Supreme Leader, and Alireza Ara, an inuential white-turbaned cleric who heads Friday prayers at the Qom Shia seminary.
Lastly, Raisi’s death comes at a time when regional tensions are at an all-time high. After the Israel-Hamas war began on October 7, 2023, regional focus shifted to Iran’s support for non-state actors in West Asia, including Hamas, Hezbollah and Houthis. Last month, Iran launched an unprecedented drone and missile attack on Israel, after its consulate in Damascus was struck. Hezbollah is ghting a slow-burning war with Israel on its northern border. Houthis, the Yemeni militia, is carrying out attacks targeting vessels in the Red Sea, “in solidarity with Palestinians”.
In recent months, Iran has exed its muscles both through its proxies and directly in West Asia. A change in presidency is unlikely to alter Iran’s overall security doctrine, which has been laid out by the clerical and military establishment. But for the smooth implementation of this multi-layered security strategy, which involves both state and non-state actors, in a hostile region, Iran needs a cohesive national leadership. The challenge before the Ayatollahs is to stay the political course irrespective of the unexpected disruptions.