World leaders have extended condolences to the Iranian government and nation over the martyrdom of President Ebrahim Raeisi in a helicopter crash in the country’s northwest.
Raeisi died alongside his accompanying delegation, including Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian, after their chopper crashed in the Dizmar forest in East Azarbaijan Province on Sunday.
Following an hours-long search hampered by poor weather conditions, rescuers found the burnt-out wreckage of the helicopter and its passengers were confirmed dead.
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi said he was “deeply saddened and shocked by the tragic demise” of the Iranian president.
“My heartfelt condolences to his family and the people of Iran,” he added. “India stands with Iran in this time of sorrow,” he said in a social media post on Monday.
India’s Foreign Minister S. Jaishankar also posted on X that he was “deeply shocked to hear of the passing away” of President Raeisi and his counterpart Hossein Amir-Abdollahian.
“Our condolences to their families,” he said. “We stand with the people of Iran at the time of this tragedy.”
Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif declared a day of mourning “as a mark of respect for President Raeisi and his companions and in solidarity with Brotherly Iran.”
“Pakistan had the pleasure of hosting President Raeisi and Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian on a historic visit, less than a month ago. They were good friends of Pakistan,” he wrote on X.
“I along with the government and people of Pakistan extend our deepest condolences and sympathies to the Iranian nation on this terrible loss. May the martyred souls rest in heavenly peace. The great Iranian nation will overcome this tragedy with customary courage.”
