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Iran's Cabinet Holds Emergency Session after Raisi Copter Crash

Azerbaijan's President Ilham Aliyev and Iran's President Ebrahim Raisi, attend the inauguration ceremony of Qiz Qalasi dam, at the border between Iran and Azerbaijan. A helicopter with Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi on board had to make an emergency landing in the west of the country on Sunday, state media reported. -/dpa
Azerbaijan's President Ilham Aliyev and Iran's President Ebrahim Raisi, attend the inauguration ceremony of Qiz Qalasi dam, at the border between Iran and Azerbaijan. A helicopter with Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi on board had to make an emergency landing in the west of the country on Sunday, state media reported. -/dpa
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Iran's Cabinet Holds Emergency Session after Raisi Copter Crash

Azerbaijan's President Ilham Aliyev and Iran's President Ebrahim Raisi, attend the inauguration ceremony of Qiz Qalasi dam, at the border between Iran and Azerbaijan. A helicopter with Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi on board had to make an emergency landing in the west of the country on Sunday, state media reported. -/dpa
Azerbaijan's President Ilham Aliyev and Iran's President Ebrahim Raisi, attend the inauguration ceremony of Qiz Qalasi dam, at the border between Iran and Azerbaijan. A helicopter with Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi on board had to make an emergency landing in the west of the country on Sunday, state media reported. -/dpa

The Iranian cabinet has convened for an emergency meeting in light of the helicopter accident involving President Ebrahim Raisi and Foreign Minister Hussein Amirabdollahian, state media reported Sunday.

The first vice president, Mohammad Mokhber, chaired the meeting in the late evening, state news agency IRNA reported.

He initiated further measures for the rescue operation. According to protocol, Mockber would become president in the event of Raisi's death, DPA reported.

Rescue workers continued to search on foot after dark for the scene of the helicopter accident, in poor weather conditions.

A total of 65 rescue teams were involved in the search for the helicopter's crew, including the Iranian armed forces.

According to the Tasnim news agency, the accident site has been located.

Meanwhile, special mountain rescue units also arrived in the accident region.

The the Iranian president's helicopter came in for what has been called a "hard landing" on Sunday in the north-west of the country after a meeting between Raisi and the president of neighbouring Azerbaijan, Ilham Aliyev.

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Grossi Wants to Meet with Iran’s Pezeshkian ‘at Earliest Convenience’

International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Director General Rafael Grossi speaks to the media at the Dupont Circle Hotel in Washington, US, March 15, 2023. (Reuters)
International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Director General Rafael Grossi speaks to the media at the Dupont Circle Hotel in Washington, US, March 15, 2023. (Reuters)
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Grossi Wants to Meet with Iran’s Pezeshkian ‘at Earliest Convenience’

International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Director General Rafael Grossi speaks to the media at the Dupont Circle Hotel in Washington, US, March 15, 2023. (Reuters)
International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Director General Rafael Grossi speaks to the media at the Dupont Circle Hotel in Washington, US, March 15, 2023. (Reuters)

Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Rafael Grossi announced he intends to visit Tehran through a letter he addressed to Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian.

Iranian Mehr Agency reported that Grossi sent a congratulatory message to the Iranian president-elect, which stated: “I would like to extend my heartfelt congratulations to you on your election win as President of the Islamic Republic of Iran.”

“Cooperation between the International Atomic Energy Agency and the Islamic Republic of Iran has been at the focal attention of the international circles for many years. I am confident that, together, we will be able to make decisive progress on this crucial matter.”

“To that effect, I wish to express my readiness to travel to Iran to meet with you at the earliest convenience,” Iran’s Mehr news agency quoted Grossi as saying.

The meeting – should it take place - will be the first for Pezeshkian, who had pledged during his election campaign to be open to the West to resolve outstanding issues through dialogue.

Last week, American and Israeli officials told the Axios news site that Washington sent a secret warning to Tehran last month regarding its fears of Iranian research and development activities that might be used to produce nuclear weapons.

In May, Grossi expressed his dissatisfaction with the course of the talks he held over two days in Iran in an effort to resolve outstanding matters.

Since the death of the former Iranian president, Ibrahim Raisi, the IAEA chief refrained from raising the Iranian nuclear file, while European sources said that Tehran had asked to “freeze discussions” until the internal situation was arranged and a new president was elected.