
* I hope that the future Iranian leadership wants to commit itself to the stabilisation and pacification of the region—Italy Prime Minister Georgia Melon
* His contribution to strengthening India-Iran bilateral relationship will always be remembered—India Prime Minister Narendra Modi
* Arab Republic of Egypt is in solidarity the with the Iranian leadership and people in this terrible incident—President Abdul Fattah
Reuters
After the official confirmation of the death of Iran’s President Ebrahim Raisi, a hardliner seen as a potential successor to Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, was killed after his helicopter crashed in poor weather in mountains near the Azerbaijan border, messages of condolences poured in from across the global.

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The charred wreckage of the helicopter which crashed on Sunday carrying Raisi, his Foreign Minister, Hossein Amirabdollahian and six other passengers and crew was found early today after an overnight search in blizzard conditions.
In his condolence, Russian President Vladimir Putin said Raisi “was an outstanding politician whose entire life was devoted to serving the Motherland.
“As a true friend of Russia, he made an invaluable personal contribution to the development of good neighbourly relations between our countries and made great efforts to bring them to the level of strategic partnership.”

Vladimir Putin
Italian Prime Minister Georgia Melon was on Channel 5 TV saying: “I see in these hours that the Iranian authorities are crediting the thesis of the accident and not conspiracy theories.
“I do not see any changes in the internal order in Iran, we are in constant contact with our European and G7 allies because we are talking about an incident that is part of a particularly complex regional framework.
“I hope that the future Iranian leadership wants to commit itself to the stabilisation and pacification of the region.”
India Prime Minister Narendra Modi shared his on X, formerly Twitter, saying: “Deeply saddened and shocked by the tragic demise of Dr. Seyed Ebrahim Raisi, president of the Islamic Republic of Iran.
“His contribution to strengthening India-Iran bilateral relationship will always be remembered. My heartfelt condolences to his family and the people of Iran. India stands with Iran in this time of sorrow.”

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi
On his part, President Abdul Fattah the Arab Republic of Egypt, said his country is in “solidarity with the Iranian leadership and people in this terrible incident”.
On behalf of President Xi Jinping, China’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson said President Raisi made important contributions towards Iran’s security and stability, and towards developing the comprehensive strategic partnership between China and Iran.
Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said on X: “The great Iranian nation will overcome this tragedy with customary courage. Pakistan will observe a day of mourning and the flag will fly at half mast as a mark of respect for President Raisi and his companions and in solidarity with brotherly Iran.”
Palestine Iranian-back Jihad group said: “Raisi’s loss was “a great one for the Palestinian people in these difficult circumstances, as he played a prominent and clear role in supporting and assisting the struggle of the Palestinian people”.

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There was less reaction from Western capitals, though the European Union and Japan expressed condolences as well as Sudan’s Sovereign Council, whose Head Abdel Fattah AlBurhan expressed the solidarity of the Government of Sudan and its people with the leadership and the Iranian people in this great loss.
Malaysian Prime Minister, Anwwar Ibrahim said on Facebook that President Raisi “exemplified a deep commitment to the welfare of his people and the dignity of his nation, which represents a proud and rich civilisation rooted in the principles of Islam”.
“His dedication to justice, peace, and the uplift of the ummah was truly inspiring”, while Venezuel President, Nicolas Maduro said he was “deeply saddened to have to say goodbye to an exemplary person, an extraordinary leader of the world as our brother Ebrahim is, and will always be, an excellent human being, defender of the sovereignty of his people and unconditional friend of our country”.
“From Bolivarian lands, we express our deepest condolences to Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and wish for divine consolation for such a sensitive loss.”

Supreme Leader Khamenei
Meanwhile, Supreme Leader Khamenei, who holds ultimate power with a final say on foreign policy and Iran’s nuclear programme, said first vice-president Mohammad Mokhber takes over as interim president with deputy Foreign Minister Ali Bagheri Kani appointed in acting capacity while announcing five days of public mourning.
Under the Islamic Republic’s constitution, a new presidential election must be held within 50 days and any candidate must first be vetted by the Guardian Council, a hardline watchdog that has often disqualified even prominent conservative and moderate officials, meaning the overall thrust of Iranian policy would be unlikely to change.
Footage from Iranian state television showed wreckage scattered on a foggy hillside, while separate images from IRNA showed Red Crescent workers carrying a covered body on a stretcher.
The crash comes at a time of growing dissent within Iran over an array of political, social and economic crises. Iran’s clerical rulers face international pressure over Tehran’s disputed nuclear programme and its deepening military ties with Russia during the war in Ukraine.
‘Shadow War’
Since Iran’s ally Hamas attacked Israel on Oct. 7 last year, provoking Israel’s assault on Gaza, conflagrations involving Iran-aligned groups have erupted throughout the Middle East.
A long ‘shadow war’ between Iran and Israel broke into the open last month with tit-for-tat exchanges of drone and missile fire but an Israeli official told Reuters it was not involved in the crash: “It wasn’t us,” said the official, who requested anonymity.
State media reported that images from the site showed the US-made Bell 212 helicopter slammed into a mountain peak, although there was no official word on the cause of the crash. The dead also included the governor of East Azerbaijan Province and a senior imam from Tabriz city.
Decades of sanctions have made it hard for Iran to obtain parts or upgrade its aircraft. Russia offered to assist Iran with investigating the crash.
The helicopter went down in Varzeqan region north of Tabriz, state news agency IRNA reported, as Raisi returned from the Azerbaijani border yesterday to inaugurate the Qiz-Qalasi Dam, a joint project.

The function he attended on Sunday
Azerbaijan’s President Ilham Aliyev, who said he had bid a “friendly farewell” to Raisi earlier in the day, had offered assistance in the rescue, whose teams fought rain, blizzards and difficult terrain through the night to reach the wreckage in the early hours of today.
Raisi’s victory in a closely managed election in 2021 brought all branches of power under the control of hardliners, after eight years when the presidency had been held by pragmatist Hassan Rouhani and a nuclear deal negotiated with powers including Washington.
However, Raisi’s standing may have been dented by widespread protests against clerical rule following the death of 22-year-old Kurdish woman, Mahsa Amini in morality police custody, and a failure to turn around Iran’s economy, hamstrung by Western sanctions.—Reporting by Parisa Hafezi in Dubai and Yomma Ehab in Cairo; Stephen Coates & Alex Richardson, Reuters

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