TEHRAN: Iran’s final investigation into the May helicopter crash that killed president Ebrahim Raisi has found the incident was caused by adverse weather conditions, the investigative body said Sunday.
The helicopter, which was transporting 63-year-old President Raisi and his entourage, crashed on May 19, 2024, on a fog-enshrouded mountainside in northern Iran. The crash resulted in the deaths of President Raisi, and seven others, including his foreign minister, Hossein Amir-Abdollahian.
According to the special board tasked with examining the accident, the primary cause of the crash was the “complex climatic and atmospheric conditions” prevailing in the region during the spring. The report, released by state broadcaster IRIB, states that a “sudden emergence of a thick mass of dense and rising fog” led to the helicopter’s collision with the mountain.
The Iranian army, which initially investigated the crash, had also ruled out any evidence of criminal activity or foul play. This conclusion aligns with the recent findings of the investigative board. The army’s preliminary report had similarly attributed the accident to the severe weather conditions without suggesting any intentional wrongdoing.
Earlier in August, conflicting reports emerged from the Fars news agency, which highlighted bad weather as a significant factor in the crash but also suggested that the helicopter’s inability to ascend with two extra passengers, which allegedly violated security protocols, might have contributed to the incident.
However, this claim was swiftly refuted by the Iranian armed forces, who dismissed the assertion as “completely false.”
