Iranian state media has confirmed the death of President Ebrahim Raisi, along with Iran's foreign minister and several others in a helicopter crash in a remote mountain region near the border with Azerbaijan, Armenia, and Turkey.
This was apparently footage of the recovery mission:
And this was footage of the crash site:
A line of succession is already in the works and new leaders are fulfilling the duties of those killed Sunday.
From CNN:
Acting president: In the wake of Raisi's death, Vice President Mohammad Mokhber has been appointed as acting president.
Acting foreign minister: Ali Bagheri Kani, who has led Iranian delegations through indirect negotiations with the United States over nuclear issues and prisoner exchanges, has been appointed acting foreign minister after the death of Amir-Abdollahian, state news agency IRNA reported.
By Iranian law, a new election must be held within the next 50 days to select a new Iranian leader. The vice president, speaker of parliament, and head of judiciary must come together now to plan for an emergency election.
Ayatollah Khamenei, the Supreme Leader of Iran, has proclaimed a five-day mourning period for those lost in the apparent accident. Terror groups like Hamas and Hezbollah, along with Russia's Vladimir Putin, are also sending their condolences.
Around the world, regular folk largely celebrated the news. If you don't know, Raisi was called the "Butcher of Tehran" for his role as a prosecutor in the '80s that led to the torture and execution of at least 5,000 people. Raisi canceled a trip to the UN in Geneva, Switzerland, last year over concerns he could be arrested for international war crimes.
[Warning: This next pic is graphic]
Here was the general mood after his death:
Social media is full of such celebrations, including inside Iran. Others, such as Hamas (which released an official statement), mourned his death. It is unknown how the rich liberal kids in the Ivy League will react to the news.
The media, meanwhile, did its "austere religious scholar" routine:
What you need to know: A lot of people are doomsaying on social media, saying this will spark WW3. Rumors of assassination are circling, but if this was an assassination, it is good to remember that power plays and regime change (especially within brutal dictatorships) are often planned from within.
Raisi was seen as a contender for the role of Supreme Leader. Khamenei is 85 years old and in poor health. Now that Raisi is dead, Khamenei's son Mojtaba is essentially guaranteed the role.
In essence, the most likely explanations are 1) that a dictatorship with poor governance and rampant corruption had unqualified pilots flying a poorly maintained helicopter or 2) that someone in Iran wanted Raisi removed from the chess board.
Or, in short, the Middle East is acting like the Middle East.
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