A helicopter carrying President #EbrahimRaisi of #Iran & his foreign minister crashed on Sunday in the country’s mountainous northwest, acc/to state media, deepening the turmoil that has gripped the nation on both the international & domestic fronts in recent months.
#Raisi, 63, was traveling from Iran’s border w/ Azerbaijan to inaugurate a joint dam project.
…#Raisi oversaw a sweeping & deadly crackdown on domestic #protesters, many of them #women & young people, who took to the streets against the country’s ruling clerics. #Rights groups said hundreds of protesters were killed by Iran’s security forces.
Raisi has been viewed as one of the front-runners to succeed #Khamenei as supreme leader. One of his main rivals for that role is #Khamene’s son.
Despite the crash, some analysts said they did not expect a major change in #Iran’s agenda abroad.