The President of Iran, Ebrahim Raisi, has recently died. He died via a helicopter crash in the mountainous area of Varzeqan, East Azerbaijan Province, Iran. According to the rescue team sent there after the crash happened, nobody survived the crash.
In pictures taken at the site while the bodies were being retrieved, it was extremely foggy. That and the helicopter was, according to the Washington Post, probably 35 years old as it was a Bell 212, a civilian version of the Huey military helicopter used during the Vietnam war
This has led Iranian authorities to say the crash happened because of technical failure. Iranian authorities have also accused the US sanctions as a reason why the helicopter was not sufficiently upgraded with newer parts and components, the US has denied this.
However, this event is pretty important for Iran and the rest of the Middle East thanks to the Israel-Hamas war, leaving the future uncertain for Iran. The President is extremely notable in Iran, he earned the nickname “The Butcher of Tehran” for his numerous human rights abuses.
Even so, there was a moment of silence for him at the United Nations. This event also saw the participation of the United States Deputy Ambassador to the United Nations, Robert Wood. This prompted the Israeli Ambassador to the United Nations to call the whole ordeal a disgrace.
This event was also brought up at a press meeting with State Department spokesman Matt Miller. According to the Washington Post, he was quoted as saying, “Some of the worst human rights abuses occurred during his tenure as president, especially the human rights abuses against the women and girls of Iran” and “That said, we regret any loss of life. We don’t want to see anyone die in a helicopter crash. But that doesn’t change the reality of his record, both as a judge and as the president of Iran.”
As always, the opinions of people around the school will be included. The question asked was, ‘what do you think about the Iranian president dying and the U.S.’s response to that?’ Brandon Colon, 10th grade said, “I think the US response should have been more disrespectful.” and Giovani Cotto in the 10th grade said, “They shouldn’t do that, the United States since they aren’t our ally“.
Besides that, funeral ceremonies are being held by the Iranian government and, on the opposite side, celebrations by Iranian civilians in and outside of Iran. It is planned for the President’s body to be in Tehran for said funeral ceremony and then to be buried in his hometown of Mashhad.
