Tehran, May 20 (EFE). – Iranian rescue teams found this Monday “without signs of life” a helicopter carrying Iranian President Ibrahim Raisi and other senior officials of the Islamic Republic, Media Luna reports. .

“There was no sign that his crew members were alive,” the head of the Red Crescent, Pir Hossein Kulivand, said on the organization’s Telegram channel.

Koolivand said they are using heat trackers to try to locate the plane’s crew.

Despite the humanitarian organization’s statement, Iranian authorities have not confirmed the death of Raisi and his companions on the plane. Foreign Minister Hossein Amir Abdolahian, East Azerbaijan Governor Malik Rahmati and Friday prayer leader in the city of Tabriz Mohammad-Ali Al-Hashem.

Iranian state television showed video of the helicopter crashing in a mountainous and forested area in the Varzekan region of East Azerbaijan province, as well as footage of rescue team members near the aircraft in thick fog.

The helicopter Raisi was flying in disappeared on Sunday as he was returning from the city of Tabriz, along with two other aircraft that reached their destination without any problems, and official Iranian media reported that he made a “forced landing” without explaining the reasons. causes. .

After contact was lost, a large apparatus was launched involving at least 65 rescue teams, but the work was hampered by bad weather, rain and thick fog in the mountainous area where the incident occurred, he told the Red Crescent.

Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei called on Sunday for calm in the face of Raisi’s unknown whereabouts and assured that “there will be no interruption in the functioning of the country.”

Meanwhile, hundreds of people gathered in the cities of Mashad, Qom and Tehran to pray for the well-being of the ultra-conservative president, according to images broadcast on state television.

This Sunday, Raisi, together with his Azerbaijani counterpart Ilham Aliyev, inaugurated a dam on the border between the two countries. The leaders called this project a step forward in bilateral relations.

The ultra-conservative president came to power in 2021 after winning a presidential election with the lowest turnout in the history of the Islamic Republic and was one of the favorites to succeed Khamenei.

During his reign, repression against activists, women and critics of the regime intensified. EFE