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By Brendan Cole
Senior Reporter
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The Palestinian militia group Hamas has expressed its condolences following the death of Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi in a helicopter crash.
Iranian state media said that Raisi has been confirmed dead following the crash in northwestern Iran on Sunday. Raisi was en route to the city of Tabriz after returning from the border with Azerbaijan. Iran's foreign minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian was among the other officials on the aircraft.
Following reports of the crash, a massive search operation was undertaken that was hampered by bad weather conditions.
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"We express our shared feelings of grief and sorrow with the brotherly Iranian people and our full solidarity with the Islamic Republic of Iran in this painful incident," Hamas said in a statement posted on X by the Palestinian news agency Quds News Network.
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The statement praised the leader's role "in supporting our Palestinian cause, backing our people's legitimate struggle."
Hamas is among allied groups that Tehran has backed and funded.
A fuller Hamas statement was posted on X by other social media users that said: "We are confident that the Islamic Republic of Iran will be able—God willing—to overcome the repercussions of this great loss. The dear Iranian people have ancient institutions capable of dealing with this severe ordeal."
Before Iranian state media confirmed the death of Raisi and the other people on the helicopter, vigils took place in the capital, Tehran, with images showing people kneeling in prayer.
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi was among the first foreign leaders to pay tribute, saying he was "deeply saddened and shocked" by the president's death.
The IRNA state news agency said Ayatollah Mohammad Ali Ale Hashem—the imam for Friday prayers in Tabriz—and the governor of the Iranian province of East Azerbaijan, General Malek Rahmati, were also on board.
The commander of the president's protection unit, Sardar Seyed Mehdi Mousavi, as well as bodyguards and helicopter crew who have not yet been named, were also among the dead, the agency added.
Under the Iranian Constitution, Mohammad Mokhber, the country's first vice president, will temporarily assume Raisi's duties pending approval from Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. A new presidential election must be organized within 50 days, Hamidreza Azizi, a research fellow at German think tank SWP Berlin said on X.
However, with only 8 percent of eligible voters participating in recent parliamentary elections, "mobilizing voters within 50 days poses a significant challenge," he wrote in a thread.
"Raisi's death intensifies internal power struggles," Azizi added. "Already, factions within the hardline camp were competing for the Speaker of Parliament role. Now, this rivalry will extend to the presidency, with different factions vying for dominance."
Update 05/20/24, 04:26 a.m. ET: This article has been updated with further information.
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