A helicopter carrying Iranian regime President Ebrahim Raisi, Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian, and other senior officials crashed on May 19 near Varzaqan in Iran’s East Azerbaijan province, killing all on board.

The helicopter went down in bad weather while returning from an event in neighboring Azerbaijan where Raisi and Amirabdollahian had met with senior Azerbaijani officials. Iran’s state media initially reported the crash but provided no details on casualties. However, search crews later said they found no signs of life at the crash site.

Aside from Raisi and Amirabdollahian, passengers of the helicopter included Mohammad Ali Ale-Hashem, the representative of regime supreme leader Ali Khamenei in East Azerbaijan province; Malek Rahmati, the governor of East Azerbaijan province; Mehdi Mousavi, commander of the presidential security guard; and three flight crew members. Mrs. Maryam Rajavi, President-elect of the National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI), said Raisi’s death “delivers a strategic blow to Khamenei and the religious fascism ruling Iran, sparking new crises and expanding the uprising by the arisen and rebellious youth.”

Mrs. Rajavi added:  The curse of mothers and those seeking justice for the executed, along with the damnation of the Iranian people and history, mark the legacy of Ebrahim Raisi, the notorious perpetrator of the 1988 massacre of political prisoners.

Ebrahim Raisi has had a history marked with violence and human rights abuses. He was one of the four members of the notorious “Death Commission” that ordered the massacre of 30,000 political prisoners in 1988, most of whom were members and supporters of the People’s Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI/MEK). Raisi had become known as the “Butcher of 1988.”

Raisi held various positions in the regime’s judiciary and continued to play an important role in the execution of thousands of Iranians. In 2019, Ali Khamenei appointed Raisi as head of the judiciary. As judiciary chief, Raisi oversaw the torture, execution and massacre of thousands of protesters during the 2019 nationwide uprisings against the regime.

Raisi was the favored candidate of Khamenei in the 2017 presidential election but faced obstacles due to revelations by the Iranian Resistance about his role in the 1988 massacre. He eventually became president in 2021, where he continued to ramp up repressive measures against the Iranian people. He was directly responsible for the killing of at least 750 protesters during the 2022 uprising and the arrest and torture of thousands of others.

As foreign minister under Raisi, Hossein Amirabdollahian had vowed to boost Iran’s support for terrorist proxy groups across the Middle East. He said the regime would continue arming militants in Lebanon, Syria, Iraq, Yemen and the Palestinian territories to project power and counter its enemies.

Amirabdollahian had a long history of promoting the regime’s terrorist activities in the Middle East and across the globe. Before becoming foreign minister, Amirabdollahian served as  Deputy Foreign Minister for Arab and African Affairs and had a very close relationship with Qassem Soleimani, the head of IRGC Quds Force and the regime’s terror mastermind. Amirabdollahian made no secret of his ties to the regime’s terrorism apparatus. Amir Abdollahian had on several occasions promised to “continue the path” of Qassem Soleimani in his foreign policy.

MEK Iran (follow us on Twitter and Facebook), Maryam Rajavi’s on her site, Twitter & Facebook, NCRI  (Twitter & Facebook), and People’s Mojahedin Organization of Iran – MEK IRAN – YouTu