Iran two days of funeral ceremonies for late President Raisi

Funeral ceremonies began yesterday (21) for late Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi, following his death in a helicopter crash, as authorities probe what caused the aircraft to smash into the side of a remote mountainside in foggy weather on Sunday (19) morning.

Raisi’s death, alongside other high-ranking officials, including the country’s foreign minister, has left the Islamic Republic’s hardline establishment facing an uncertain future, as it navigates rising regional tensions and domestic discontent.

Iran’s government has arranged multiple days of mourning culminating in a funeral later this week for the 63-year-old ultraconservative cleric, who had once been seen as a potential successor to current Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khamenei.

Yesterday (21) began with funeral prayers and a procession in the northwestern city of Tabriz, the largest city in the mountainous northwestern region of Iran where the chopper crashed, according to Mohsen Mansouri, head of the funeral planning committee and Iran’s vice president of executive affairs.

Later that day, the bodies of the victims were transferred to the holy Shiite city of Qom, where many of the clerics who make up Iran’s theocratic elite are trained, before then heading to the capital Tehran.

Large ceremonies are planned in Tehran’s enormous Grand Mosallah Mosque today (22). Mansouri announced a public holiday and the closure of offices all over the country that day, so that processions can take place.

Raisi’s body will then be moved to the historic Imam Reza shrine in Mashhad, where Ayatollah Khamenei will conduct prayers, according to Mehr News.

There is no indication what might have caused the crash – and why so many senior Iranian government officials were traveling in a single, decades-old helicopter.

In the first moments after Raisi’s helicopter lost contact on Sunday (19) night, Turkey said it monitored whether or not the aircraft gave a “signal,” but was unable to detect anything.

On Monday (20), Iranian media reported that the country’s military chief had appointed a commission to investigate the cause of the crash, which includes military and technical experts. – CNN

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