The coffins of Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi and others killed in the May 19 helicopter crash arrived in a procession with an honor guard in Tehran on May 21 ahead of a planned trip to the holy city of Qom, as part of five days of mourning declared by Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
Several commemorative rallies were held in Iran on May 21 to mark the deaths of Raisi, Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdolahian and others in an accident in northern Iran.
After their trip to Qom, the caskets will return late on May 21 to Tehran, where a funeral service presided over by Khamenei is scheduled for May 22 and will follow the procession.
Ceremonies are also being held in Birjand on May 23, when Raisi will be buried in the shrine of Imam Reza in the holy city of Mashhad, Iranian media reports.
On June 28, elections will be held to determine Raisi's successor.
Khamenei also appointed First Vice President Mohammad Mokber as interim president.
Iranian state television said the helicopter crashed due to bad weather conditions.
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Search and rescue teams, assisted by several foreign governments, searched for the helicopter after it crashed in a mountainous area of the country late on May 19.
Raisi's helicopter was en route to the city of Tabriz when it crashed near the town of Jolf in what state television said was a "hard landing," but several news reports cited government sources as saying the helicopter crashed while crossing a mountain and forested area. area.
The Iranian government said the helicopter was one of three flying in the convoy, and that the other two reportedly landed safely in Tabriz.
Raisi was elected president in 2021 and has since tightened many restrictions on Iranians by enforcing morality laws and cracking down on anti-government protests sparked by the death of Mahsa Amini while in police custody for allegedly violating a strict dress code.
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