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Iran President Raisi’s fatal helicopter crash caused by bad weather, investigation finds

  • Overloading of the aircraft was also a factor in the accident, local media reported, citing an official

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The wreckage of Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi’s helicopter is seen at the crash site on a mountain in Varzaghan area, northwestern Iran, in May. Photo: West Asia News Agency via Reuters

Iran’s investigation into the May helicopter crash that killed president Ebrahim Raisi has found it was caused by bad weather and overloading, Iranian media said Wednesday citing an official.

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The helicopter carrying 63-year-old Raisi and his entourage came down on a fog-shrouded mountainside in northern Iran, killing the president and seven others, and triggering snap elections.

Fars news agency, quoting an informed security source with knowledge of the conclusions of the probe, said Iranian security forces had “absolute certainty that what happened was an accident”.

Iran’s army in May similarly said it had found no evidence of criminal activity in the crash that also killed Raisi’s foreign minister, Hossein Amir-Abdollahian.

“The case of the crash of Ayatollah Raisi’s helicopter has been fully completed by the regulatory and security institutions,” Fars reported.

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“The security and intelligence agencies have completed their detailed investigations and there is absolute certainty that what happened was an accident,” it added, quoting the source.

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