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A helicopter carrying Iran’s president, Ebrahim Raisi was forced to make a “hard landing” on Sunday, state media reported.
The aircraft, carrying President was involved in an “accident” close to the city of Jolfa, on Iran’s northwestern border with Azerbaijan. Iran’s Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian also was reportedly on board the aircraft.
Speaking to the state Islamic Republic News Agency, emergency services ministry spokesman Babak Yektaparast said rescuers had been unable to reach the crash site by helicopter due to heavy fog.
A convoy of eight ambulances has been dispatched, accompanied by doctors and paramedics, he added.
Interior Minister Ahmad Vahidi told local media that “relief groups are moving toward the area, but due to fog and bad weather it may take some time to reach the scene of the accident.”
Senior Iranian officials have met to discuss the “recent accident,” Islamic Republic spokesperson Ali Bahadri Jahormi said in a statement.
Executive Vice President Mohammad Mokhber has left Tehran for the northwestern city of Tabriz, closer to the crash site, he added.
Iran’s IRIB News Agency reported that fears are growing that the incident is “serious” and that “there is a high possibility of injuries.”
Raisi, 63, was returning to Iran from a state visit to Azerbaijan where he met with President Ilham Aliyev. The pair cut the ribbon on a major dam along their shared border.
