Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei led prayers in Iran's capital Tehran on Wednesday in funeral ceremonies for the late President Ebrahim Raisi and others killed in a helicopter crash. The funeral, broadcast on Iranian state TV, saw large crowds gathered to pay final respects to the late president.
The death of ultraconservative Raisi and other high-ranking officials comes at a delicate time for a country that faces unprecedented challenges at home and from abroad. Nine people died in the helicopter crash on Sunday, including Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian, Imam Mohammad Ali Alehashem, Governor Malek Rahmati, along with two pilots, a chief crew, and two security staff.
Authorities are investigating what caused the crash on a remote mountainside in foggy weather. Raisi’s death has raised questions about who will eventually succeed Iran’s 85-year-old Supreme Leader Khamenei, the most powerful man in the country ruled under a strict theocracy.
