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Mourners begin days of funerals for Iran’s president & others killed in helicopter crash

Mourners in black began gathering Tuesday for days of funerals and processions for Iran’s late president, foreign minister and others killed in a helicopter crash, a government-led series of ceremonies aimed at both honoring the dead and projecting strength in an unsettled Middle East.

Quick Read

  • Days of Funerals Begin: Iran commences days of mourning with funerals for President Ebrahim Raisi and others killed in a helicopter crash.
  • Historical Context: Public mourning is significant in Iran’s Shiite theocracy, recalling mass demonstrations like those for Ayatollah Khomeini and Gen. Qassem Soleimani.
  • Raisi’s Political Impact: Raisi’s death casts uncertainty on the succession for Iran’s supreme leadership, particularly with upcoming elections.
  • Public Reaction Mixed: While the government projects strength, public sentiment is mixed, with warnings against celebrations of Raisi’s death.
  • Funeral Processions: Ceremonies include a procession in Tabriz and will include a high-profile funeral in Tehran presided over by Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
  • International Relations: Raisi’s controversial policies and international sanctions complicate foreign responses to his death.
  • Significant Burial: Raisi to be buried at Imam Reza shrine in Mashhad, a site of great religious significance.
  • National Mourning: Iran declares five days of mourning; public attendance is expected to be high due to government encouragement.
  • Domestic Unrest: Raisi’s presidency witnessed significant internal strife, including protests following Mahsa Amini’s death.
  • Public Celebrations and Criticism: Reports of anti-government chants and fireworks following news of the crash.
  • Investigation of Crash: The military, not civilian authorities, will investigate the crash, continuing the pattern seen in past aviation incidents.
  • Political Continuity: Iran’s Assembly of Experts, which includes Raisi, convenes, highlighting ongoing governance amidst leadership transitions.

The Associated Press has the story:

Mourners begin days of funerals for Iran’s president & others killed in helicopter crash

Newslooks- DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) —

Mourners in black began gathering Tuesday for days of funerals and processions for Iran’s late president, foreign minister and others killed in a helicopter crash, a government-led series of ceremonies aimed at both honoring the dead and projecting strength in an unsettled Middle East.

In this photo provided by Fars News Agency, mourners gather around a truck carrying coffins of Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi and his companions who were killed in their helicopter crash on Sunday in mountainous region of the country’s northwest, during a funeral ceremony at the city of Tabriz, Iran, Tuesday, May 21, 2024. Mourners in black began gathering Tuesday for days of funerals and processions for Iran’s late president, foreign minister and others killed in a helicopter crash, a government-led series of ceremonies aimed at both honoring the dead and projecting strength in an unsettled Middle East. (Ata Dadashi/Fars News Agency via AP)

For Iran’s Shiite theocracy, mass demonstrations have been crucial since millions thronged the streets of Tehran to welcome Grand Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini in 1979 during the Islamic Revolution, and also attended his funeral 10 years later. An estimated 1 million turned out in 2020 for processions for the late Revolutionary Guard Gen. Qassem Soleimani, who was slain in a U.S. drone strike in Baghdad.

A man lays flowers near a photo of Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi and his colleagues at a makeshift memorial at the Iranian Embassy in Moscow, Russia, Monday, May 20, 2024. Raisi, a hard-line protege of the country’s supreme leader who helped oversee the mass executions of thousands in 1988 and later led the country as it enriched uranium near weapons-grade levels, launched a major attack on Israel and experienced mass protests, has died Sunday, May 19. (AP Photo/Alexander Zemlianichenko)

Whether President Ebrahim Raisi, Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian and others draw the same crowd remains in question, particularly as Raisi died in a helicopter crash, won his office in the lowest-turnout presidential election in the country’s history and presided over sweeping crackdowns on all dissent. Prosecutors already have warned people over showing any public signs of celebrating his death and a heavy security force presence has been seen on the streets of Tehran since the crash.

In this photo provided by Fars News Agency, mourners gather around a truck carrying coffins of Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi and his companions who were killed in their helicopter crash on Sunday in mountainous region of the country’s northwest, during a funeral ceremony at the city of Tabriz, Iran, Tuesday, May 21, 2024. Mourners in black began gathering Tuesday for days of funerals and processions for Iran’s late president, foreign minister and others killed in a helicopter crash, a government-led series of ceremonies aimed at both honoring the dead and projecting strength in an unsettled Middle East. (Ata Dadashi, Fars News Agency via AP)

But Raisi, 63, had been discussed as a possible successor for Iran’s supreme leader, the 85-year-old Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. His death now throws that selection into question, particularly as there is no heir-apparent cleric for the presidency ahead of planned June 28 elections.

“Raisi’s death comes at a moment when the Islamist regime is consolidated,” wrote Alex Vatanka, an Iran expert at the Middle East Institute. “In short, there will be no power vacuum in Tehran; nonetheless, post-Khamenei Iran suddenly looks far less predictable than it did just a few days ago.”

In this photo provided by Fars News Agency, mourners carry the flag-draped coffin of Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian, who was killed in a helicopter crash along with President Ebrahim Raisi on Sunday in a mountainous region of the country’s northwest, during a funeral ceremony at the city of Tabriz, Iran, Tuesday, May 21, 2024. Mourners in black began gathering Tuesday for days of funerals and processions for Iran’s late president, foreign minister and others killed in a helicopter crash, a government-led series of ceremonies aimed at both honoring the dead and projecting strength in an unsettled Middle East. (Ata Dadashi, Fars News Agency via AP)

A procession Tuesday morning led by a semitruck carrying the caskets of the dead slowly moved through the narrow streets of downtown Tabriz, the closest major city near the site of the crash Sunday. Thousands in black slowly walked beside the coffins, some throwing flowers up to them as an emcee wept through a loudspeaker for men he described as martyrs.. On Wednesday, a funeral presided over by Khamenei will then turn into a procession as well.

The caskets later arrived in Tehran to an honor guard at the airport. They will go on to the holy Shiite seminary city of Qom before returning to the Iranian capital.

In this photo provided by Fars News Agency, mourners carry the flag-draped coffin of Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian, who was killed in a helicopter crash along with President Ebrahim Raisi on Sunday in a mountainous region of the country’s northwest, during a funeral ceremony at the city of Tabriz, Iran, Tuesday, May 21, 2024. Mourners in black began gathering Tuesday for days of funerals and processions for Iran’s late president, foreign minister and others killed in a helicopter crash, a government-led series of ceremonies aimed at both honoring the dead and projecting strength in an unsettled Middle East. (Ata Dadashi, Fars News Agency via AP)

It remains unclear what international presence that funeral will draw, as Raisi faced U.S. sanctions for his part in mass executions in 1988 and for abuses targeting protesters and dissidents while leading the country’s judiciary. Iran under Raisi also shipped bomb-carrying drones to Russia to be used in its war on Ukraine.

In this photo provided by Fars News Agency, mourners gather around a truck carrying coffins of Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi and his companions who were killed in a helicopter crash on Sunday in a mountainous region of the country’s northwest, during a funeral ceremony at the city of Tabriz, Iran, Tuesday, May 21, 2024. Mourners in black began gathering Tuesday for days of funerals and processions for Iran’s late president, foreign minister and others killed in a helicopter crash, a government-led series of ceremonies aimed at both honoring the dead and projecting strength in an unsettled Middle East. (Ata Dadashi, Fars News Agency via AP)

“I don’t feel comfortable sending condolences while Iran is sending drones that are used against civilians in Ukraine,” wrote Lithuanian Foreign Minister Gabrielius Landsbergis on the social platform X.

United Kingdom Security Minister Tom Tugendhat echoed that in his own message on X: “President Raisi’s regime has murdered thousands at home, and targeted people here in Britain and across Europe. I will not mourn him.”

In this photo provided by Fars News Agency, mourners gather around a truck carrying coffins of Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi and his companions who were killed in their helicopter crash on Sunday in a mountainous region of the country’s northwest, during a funeral ceremony at the city of Tabriz, Iran, Tuesday, May 21, 2024. Mourners in black began gathering Tuesday for days of funerals and processions for Iran’s late president, foreign minister and others killed in a helicopter crash, a government-led series of ceremonies aimed at both honoring the dead and projecting strength in an unsettled Middle East. (Ata Dadashi, Fars News Agency via AP)

On Thursday, Raisi’s hometown of Birjand will see a procession, followed by a funeral and burial at the Imam Reza shrine in the holy city of Mashhad, the only imam of the Shiite’s faith buried in Iran.

That shrine has long been a center for pilgrims and sees millions visit each year. Over the centuries, its grounds have served as the final burial site for heroes in Persian history. It’s an incredibly high, rare honor in the faith. Iranian President Mohammad-Ali Rajai, the only other president to die in office when he was killed in a 1981 bombing, was buried in Tehran.

Iran’s theocracy declared five days of mourning, encouraging people to attend the public mourning sessions. Typically, government employees and schoolchildren attend such events en masse, while others take part out of patriotism, curiosity or to witness historic events.

In this photo provided by Fars News Agency, mourners try to touch the coffins of Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi, top, Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian, left, and Raisi’s chief bodyguard Gen. Mehdi Mousavi, who were killed in a helicopter crash on Sunday in a mountainous region of the country’s northwest, during a funeral ceremony at the city of Tabriz, Iran, Tuesday, May 21, 2024. Mourners in black began gathering Tuesday for days of funerals and processions for Iran’s late president, foreign minister and others killed in a helicopter crash, a government-led series of ceremonies aimed at both honoring the dead and projecting strength in an unsettled Middle East. (Ata Dadashi, Fars News Agency via AP)

Across Iran, its rural population often more closely embraces the Shiite faith and the government. However, Tehran has long held a far different view of Raisi and his government’s policies as mass protests have roiled the capital for years.

The most recent involved the 2022 death of Mahsa Amini, a woman detained over her allegedly loose headscarf, or hijab. The monthslong security crackdown that followed the demonstrations killed more than 500 people and saw over 22,000 detained. In March, a United Nations investigative panel found that Iran was responsible for the “physical violence” that led to Amini’s death. Meanwhile, Iran’s rial currency has cratered after the collapse of Iran’s nuclear deal with world powers, destroying people’s savings and pensions.

In this photo provided by Moj News Agency, rescue teams members carry the body of a victim after a helicopter carrying Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi crashed in Varzaghan, northwestern Iran, Monday, May 20, 2024. Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi, the country’s foreign minister and others have been found dead at the site of a helicopter crash after an hours-long search through a foggy, mountainous region of the country’s northwest, state media reported. (Azin Haghighi, Moj News Agency via AP)

On Sunday night, as news of the helicopter crash circulated, some offered anti-government chants in the night. Fireworks could be seen in some parts of the capital, though Sunday also marked a remembrance for Imam Reza, which can see them set off as well. Critical messages and dark jokes over the crash also circulated online.

Iran’s top prosecutor has already issued an order demanding cases be filed against those “publishing false content, lies and insults” against Raisi and others killed in the crash, according to the semiofficial ISNA news agency.

People pray for President Ebrahim Raisi in a ceremony at Vali-e-Asr square in downtown Tehran, Iran, Sunday, May 19, 2024. A helicopter carrying President Raisi, the country’s foreign minister and other officials apparently crashed in the mountainous northwest reaches of Iran on Sunday, sparking a massive rescue operation in a fog-shrouded forest as the public was urged to pray. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)

No cause has yet been offered by Iran’s government for the crash, which took place in a foggy mountain range in a decadesold helicopter. Iranian presidents including hard-liner Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and Abolhasan Banisadr both survived their own helicopter crashes while in office.

Iran’s military, not its civil aviation authority, will investigate and later offer a report, authorities say. Iran’s civil air crash investigators faced widespread international criticism over their reports on the downing of a Ukrainian passenger plane by an air defense battery in 2020 after Soleimani’s killing.

FILE – Iranian First Vice President Mohammad Mokhber meets with Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin, on the sidelines of the Council of Heads of Government of the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) and Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) member States in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan, Oct. 25, 2023. Iran’s supreme leader appointed Mokhber as country’s acting president Monday, May 20, 2024, after a helicopter crash killed President Ebrahim Raisi. (Dmitry Astakhov, Sputnik, Kremlin Pool Photo via AP, File)

Meanwhile Tuesday, Iran’s new Assembly of Experts opened its first session after an election that decided the new assembly, a panel of which both Raisi and the late Tabriz Friday leader Mohammad Ali Ale-Heshem were members. A flower-ringed portrait sat on the seat Raisi would have occupied at the meeting of the 88-member panel, which is tasked with selecting the country’s next supreme leader. Also attending was Iran’s acting President Mohammad Mokhber.

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