Iran Armed Forces reject report on Raisi’s helicopter crash as “completely false”

The Iran Armed Forces General Staff has dismissed as “completely false” a report claiming that the helicopter crash that killed former President Ebrahim Raisi in May was caused by weather conditions and the aircraft’s inability to handle its weight.

According to state media, the communications centre of the Armed Forces General Staff, responsible for publishing information on the crash investigation, rejected the report, citing a security source informed of the final investigation results.

The report, which was published by Iran’s semi-official news agency on Wednesday, claimed that the helicopter crash was caused by unsuitable weather conditions and the aircraft’s inability to handle its weight, leading to it crashing into a mountain.

However, the Armed Forces General Staff has denied this, stating that the investigation has been completed and there is “complete certainty” that the crash was an accident.

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The security source, who was not named, told Fars news agency that two reasons for the accident were identified: the weather conditions were unsuitable, and the helicopter was unable to handle the weight, leading to it crashing into a mountain.

Raisi, a potential successor to Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, was killed in the crash in mountainous terrain near the Azerbaijan border. The investigation indicates that the helicopter was carrying two people more than the capacity that security protocols allow.

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