Funeral of Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi Held in Tehran

Iran International has wrapped up its live coverage of the funeral of Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi, Amir-Abdollahian, the foreign minister and other high-level officials in a chopper crash on Sunday.

You can continue to follow our latest updates from our website here.

"A very experience team" is investigating the helicopter crash that killed Iran's president Ebrahim Raisi and his companions, said the deputy commander of the Iranian Army's Air Force, Mehdi Hadian.

Iran's Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei on Wednesday visited the house of Ebrahim Raisi, the Iranian president who was killed in a Sunday helicopter crash, and met his family members.

Bahraini Foreign Minister Abdullatif bin Rashid Al Zayani, whose country's relations with Iran have been severed since 2016, paid tribute to Ebrahim Raisi's dead body during a visit to Tehran.

Earlier in the day, Egypt's foreign minister Sameh al-Shoukry also made his first visit to Tehran despite the two countries not having diplomatic relations.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan will travel to Iran on Thursday, Turkish media reported citing a spokesperson for Erdogan's AK Party.

It's not clear yet if Erdogan will visit the northeastern city of Mashhad to attend Raisi's burial ceremony or his visit will be limited to Tehran, according to Turkish media.

“The death of Ebrahim Raisi must not deny people in Iran their right to justice, truth and reparation for the litany of crimes under int’l law and human rights violations committed since the 1980s during his time in echelons of power,” said the Amesty International in a statement on Wednesday.

“Ebrahim Raisi should have been criminally investigated, including for the crimes against humanity of murder, enforced disappearance and torture, while he was alive. His death must not rob his victims and their families of their right to truth and to see all others complicit in his crimes held to account,” said Diana Eltahawy, Amnesty International’s Deputy Regional Director for the Middle East and North Africa.

“For decades, perpetrators bearing criminal responsibility have enjoyed the systematic impunity that prevails in Iran. The international community must act now to establish pathways to accountability for victims of crimes under international law and other serious human rights violations committed by Ebrahim Raisi and other Iranian officials, the statement added.

The deaths of Iran's president and foreign minister in a helicopter crash have caused a pause in the UN nuclear watchdog's talks with Tehran over improving cooperation with the agency, the watchdog's chief told Reuters on Wednesday.

The IAEA had planned to resume technical discussions with Iran for about a year now, but these plans were put on hold following last weekend's crash that killed President Ebrahim Raisi and his delegation.

Tehran recently barred many of the most experienced uranium-enrichment experts from the IAEA's inspection team and continues to fail to explain the presence of uranium traces at undeclared sites despite a years-long investigation by the IAEA.

Iran is enriching uranium to 60% purity, close to weapons-grade, which no other country has done without creating nuclear weapons.

Naim Qassem, Deputy Secretary General of Hezbollah, Ismail Haniyeh, the Chief of Hamas, Falih Al-Fayyadh, the chairman of the Popular Mobilization Forces, and Mohammed Abdul-Salam, the spokesman for Yemen's Houthi Ansarullah movement, were among those present at the ceremony honoring Raisi and his delegation.

Dozens of foreign delegations gathered in Tehran on Wednesday for a ceremony honoring Ebrahim Raisi and his delegation, who died in the helicopter crash.

Attendees included Vyacheslav Volodin, the speaker of Russia's parliament, Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia' Al Sudani, and Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan.

Acting President Mohammad Mokhber, Acting Foreign Minister Ali Bagheri, and Deputy President for Executive Affairs Mohsen Mansouri received the officials.

Indian Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar and Belarusian Foreign Minister Sergei Aleinik have arrived in Tehran to pay tribute to Raisi and his delegation, who were killed in the helicopter crash.

The list of attendees extends further with the arrival of Egypt's Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry, Tajikistan's President Emomali Rahmon, and Azerbaijan's Prime Minister Ali Asadov.

In addition, Russian, Armenian, Iraqi, and Lebanese officials have already arrived in Tehran for the ceremony in honor of the late President Raisi and his accompanying delegation.

On Wednesday Iranian government media outlets published conflicting figures regarding the number of foreign delegations participating in the memorial ceremony for President Raisi in Tehran.

Tasnim News Agency, affiliated with the Revolutionary Guards, reported the attendanceof "50 high-ranking foreign delegations," including leaders, ministers, and parliamentary heads.

Fars News Agency, another IRGC-linked media outlet, claimed that "more than 40 delegations" would attend to offer condolences.Meanwhile, the ISNA news agency reported a lower figure, citing only 15 senior officials from various countries at the memorial ceremony.

Notable attendees reportedly include the Emir of Qatar, the National Leader of the Turkmen people, Russia’s parliament speaker, the presidents of Tunisia and Tajikistan, and the prime ministers of Iraq, Pakistan, Armenia, Qatar, and Azerbaijan.

A cartoon from the Charlie Hebdo series depicts Iran executing a helicopter as the assassin of President Raisi.

Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia Al-Sudani met Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei in Tehran on Wednesday (May 22), shortly after Khamenei led a prayer for late president Raisi.

Additionally, Qatar's Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad A Thani and the prime minister and foreign minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani headed to Iran on Wednesday to attend the funeral of Raisi, the Emiri Diwan said.

Hamas Chief Ismail Haniyeh expressed condolences to Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei during a meeting following a funeral procession for Raisi and his delegation in Tehran.

Haniyeh, alongside Naim Qassem, Hezbollah's deputy secretary-general, and other representatives of Iranian proxy groups, attended the event in the capital Tehran.

Formed over decades of support from Iran, several groups have coalesced under the banner of the "Axis of Resistance," opposing Israeli and US influence in the Middle East. The unofficial coalition includes Hamas, which ignited the current Middle East crisis by attacking Israel on October 7, as well as Hezbollah in Lebanon, the Houthi movement in Yemen, and various Shiite armed factions in Iraq, and Syria.

Transportation Minister Mehrdad Bazrpash, who was aboard one of the helicopters that safely returned, said that those who advocated for Raisi to serve only one term as president and not seek reelection are likely pleased with the current situation.

Additionally, Bazrpash stated that Raisi's passing creates a void within the government but emphasized that his absence poses no significant issues for the government.

The family of Pouya Bakhtiari, a young Iranian protester killed during the 2019 protests, has disclosed that their cousin Behrouz Ghadimi served as the flight technician aboard President Raisi's helicopter that crashed on Sunday.

His aunt and uncle revealed the information on X.

Pouya, aged 27, was fatally shot in the head during the November 2019 protests in Karaj. His family holds security forces responsible for his death and has been vocal in their demand for accountability.

Pouya's father has called for justice not just for his son but also for the hundreds reportedly killed by security forces during the protests. He received an 18-year prison sentence in January.

The Iranian Armed Forces have refuted claims of Turkey's drone pinpointing the location of the helicopter wreckage carrying Ebrahim Raisi and his delegation.

In a statement released on Wednesday, Armed Forces asserted that ground rescue teams and Iranian military drones “accurately determined the crash site.”

Explaining the circumstances leading to the involvement of the Turkish drone, the statement cited adverse weather conditions and the mountainous terrain as the reasons that made ground search efforts challenging.

“Despite Turkey deploying a drone equipped with night vision and thermal cameras, it failed to provide precise location data due to technical limitations,” the statement read.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's statement, wherein he not only declared a day of public mourning in solidarity with Tehran but also mentioned Iran's request for sending the drone.

Erdogan hailed the drone’s "success" in pinpointing the crash site as a demonstration of “Turkish drone capabilities, showcasing their prowess to the world.”

On Wednesday morning, Vyacheslav Volodin, the speaker of Russia's parliament, Mohammed Shia' Al Sudani, the Prime Minister of Iraq, and Nikol Pashinyan, the Prime Minister of Armenia, arrived in Tehran to attend an event in honor of Ebrahim Raisi and other victims of the crash.

Delegations from Lebanon, led by Nabih Berri, Speaker of Parliament, and Naim Qassem, Deputy Secretary-General of Hezbollah, have also traveled to Iran to join the ceremony.

This afternoon, Tehran will host a ceremony for the late President Raisi and his delegation, with the participation of "high-ranking foreign delegations."

Former presidents Mohammad Khatami, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, and Hassan Rouhani were not seen in photographs from the ceremony. They, however, sent messages of condolences.

Their apparent absence at the ceremony, a rare occurrence in Iranian politics, has sparked discussions about the current political landscape.

Khatami and Rouhani referred to Raisi as a "martyr" in their messages, whereas Ahmadinejad extended condolences without using the term "martyr." The death of officials while on duty is considered ‘martyrdom’ in the Islamic Republic.

Beijing will continue to deepen its relations with Tehran and safeguard mutual interests, after a helicopter crash that killed President Ebrahim Raisi and his foreign minister, Wang Yi, China’s foreign minister said on Tuesday.

“Regardless of how conditions change, Beijing will continue to deepen its strategic partnership with Tehran, safeguard the shared interests of both countries, and continue its efforts for peace in the region and the world,” Wang Yi told Mahdi Safari, Iran’s deputy foreign minister.

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Ismail Haniyeh, head of Hamas's political bureau, Naim Qassem, deputy secretary-general of Hezbollah, and several other representatives of Iran's proxy groups attended the ceremony for Raisi.

Haniyeh also delivered a speech to honor Raisi.

Iran’s Supreme leader Ali Khamenei performed funeral prayers at the university of Tehran on Wednesday (May 22) ahead of the funeral of President Ebrahim Raisi and his accompanying delegation, who died in a helicopter crash near the Azerbaijan border at the weekend.

Khamenei did not deliver any speech and immediately left the event. Pundits are comparing his demeanour to his emotional state when he led funeral prayer for IRGC-Quds force commander Qassem Soleimani.

Mourners wore black and held photos of the late president as they took part in the prayers.

The death of the president came at a time of deepening crisis between the clerical leadership and society at large over issues from tightening social and political controls to economic hardship.

Raisi's body was flown from Tabriz, the closest major city to the remote crash site, to Tehran airport before heading to the religious city of Qom. From there, it was returned to the capital to lie at Tehran's Grand Mosalla Mosque before being transferred to his hometown of Mashhad, in eastern Iran, for burial on Thursday (May 23).

Mourners attended a funeral ceremony for late Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi in Tehran on Wednesday.