TEHRAN (Iran News) –A member of the executive council of the Securities and Exchange Organization of Iran said the stock exchange market has been shut down following the martyrdom of President Raisi and his entourage.

Minister of Youth Affairs and Sports Kiomars Hashemi has also ordered the cancellation of all sports games and competitions in the current week.

A helicopter carrying President Raisi and his entourage crashed on Sunday when they were returning from Khoda Afarin region in Iran’s northwestern province of East Azarbaijan after inaugurating a dam at the common border with the Republic of Azerbaijan.

The crash killed the president, Foreign Minister Amirabdollahian, Friday prayers leader of Tabriz Ayatollah Mohammad Ali Al-e-Hashem, Governor of East Azarbaijan Malek Rahmati, and members of the president’s security team and the crew.

A large-scale search and rescue operation to locate the doomed aircraft was launched on Sunday evening.

The wreckage of the helicopter was found on Monday morning in a remote mountainous area in the Arasbaran forests.

TEHRAN (Iran News) –A helicopter carrying Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi and his entourage crashed in northwestern mountainous forests on Sunday.

The tragic accident killed the president and seven others, including Amirabdollahian.

On Monday, Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyed Ali Khamenei issued a message of condolence, assigning First Vice President Mohammad Mokhber to the position of head of the Executive Branch.

For his part, Mokhber appointed Deputy Foreign Minister Ali Baqeri Kani as the head of the administration’s committee of foreign relations affairs.

Baqeri has served as Iran’s top negotiator in the talks on the revival of the 2015 nuclear deal.

TEHRAN (Iran News) –In a message on Monday morning, Ayatollah Khamenei sent condolences on the passing away of President Raisi and his entourage in a helicopter crash in northwestern Iran.

What follows is the text of the message, released by Khamenei.ir:

“In the Name of God, the Compassionate, the Merciful

Surely we belong to God and to Him we shall return

With deep sorrow and regret, I have received the bitter news of the martyrdom-like demise of the mujahid scholar, the people’s President, the competent, hard-working servant of Imam Reza (PBUH), Hujjat al-Islam wal-Muslimeen, Haj Sayyid Ebrahim Raisi and his esteemed entourage (may God be pleased with them). This bitter tragedy took place while he was serving the people. The entire period that this great, self-sacrificing person held various responsibilities, both during his brief presidency and before that, he was totally dedicated to serving the people, the country, and Islam nonstop.

Our honorable Raisi worked tirelessly. In this bitter tragedy, the Iranian nation lost a devoted, sincere, valuable individual who served their country. For him, the well-being and satisfaction of the people, which he considered to be a reflection of divine approval, took precedence over everything else. Therefore, the hurt he suffered due to the ingratitude and taunts of some ill-wishers did not deter him from his round-the-clock efforts for progress and to improve matters.

In this tragic event, prominent figures such as Hujjat al-Islam Ale-Hashem, the beloved, respected Friday Prayer Leader of Tabriz, Mr. Amirabdollahian, the diligent, active Minister of Foreign Affairs, Mr. Malek Rahmati, the revolutionary, religious governor of East Azerbaijan, the flight crew, and other associates who were accompanying him have also passed away. I hereby declare five days of public mourning and offer my condolences to the dear Iranian nation.

According to Article 131 of the (Iranian) Constitution, Mr. Mokhber will assume the position of head of the Executive Branch and is obliged to cooperate with the heads of the Legislative and Judicial Branches in facilitating the election of a new president within a period that is not to exceed 50 days. Finally, I extend my heartfelt condolences to the honorable mother of Mr. Raisi, his virtuous, noble wife, the other bereaved family members of the President, and the honorable families of his entourage, in particular the hard-working father of Mr. Ale-Hashem. I pray for their patience and solace, and pray for God’s mercy for the departed souls.

Sayyid Ali Khamenei

May 20, 2024”

The tragic accident happened as the president and his entourage were returning from Khoda Afarin region in Iran’s northwestern province of East Azarbaijan after inaugurating a dam at the common border with the Republic of Azerbaijan.

The crash killed President Raisi, Foreign Minister Amirabdollahian, Friday prayers leader of Tabriz Ayatollah Mohammad Ali Ale-Hashem, Governor of East Azarbaijan Malek Rahmati, and members of the president’s security team and the crew.

The wreckage of the helicopter was found by rescue teams in the wee hours of Monday.

TEHRAN (Iran News) –The Qiz-Qalasi dam, constructed jointly by Iran and the Azerbaijan Republic, will come on stream on Sunday in a ceremony to be attended by Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi and his Azeri counterpart Ilham Aliyev.

The embankment dam is located in the Khoda Afarin region in Iran’s northwestern province of East Azarbaijan.

With a capacity of 62 million cubic meters, the Qiz-Qalasi dam will supply water to the irrigation and drainage networks of Khoda Afarin county.

A hydroelectric power station coupled with the dam has also been designed to generate 270 MWh of electricity per annum.

Known as the biggest water project in Iran’s northwestern border areas, the Qiz-Qalasi dam is estimated to regulate 2 billion cubic meters of water every year.

TEHRAN (Iran News) –Addressing the 5th International Congress of Imam Reza (AS) in Mashhad on Tuesday, President Ebrahim Raisi said the younger generation’s growing enthusiasm for religion indicates the righteousness of the Islamic establishment’s justice-advocating stances against the arrogance system.

Denouncing the support provided by the US and the Western governments for the Zionist regime in its onslaught against Gaza and deploring the failure of the international organizations and the self-proclaimed advocates of human rights in ending the Israeli genocidal atrocities, Raisi said, “Today, it has become clear to everybody that the current international system is unjust.”

Pointing to the Pro-Palestine demonstrations in the universities across the world, the president said the fact that all freedom-seeking nations in the world are now united in their quest for the liberation of Palestine clearly demonstrates that the free humans are calling for the formation of a just world order.

He also noted that the blood of 15,000 innocent Palestinian children shed by the Israeli regime in the onslaught on Gaza has the power to terminate the criminal Zionist regime.

At least 35,173 people have been killed and 79,061 wounded in Israeli attacks on Gaza since October 7, 2023.

TEHRAN (Iran News) –During a visit to the 35th Tehran International Book Fair on Saturday, Raisi went to the joint pavilion of Palestinian students in Iran.

Calling on the writers, artists and people of culture to pay more attention to transnational issues, especially the issue of Palestine and Gaza, the president said, “I also explained during my presence at this pavilion that today, Gaza has become a painting, one side of which is the bright page of honor, resistance and love for God, and the other side of it is the display of the height of shame, crime and genocide of the Zionist regime and its supporters, above all the Americans.”

“This page has removed the veil of hypocrisy and revealed the true face of Western civilization and it is necessary to record these two pages with cultural and artistic tools, including books and films, and display them for ages and generations,” he stated.

In a meeting with the officials of the Islamic Propagation Organization in January 2023, Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyed Ali Khamenei described plans to develop cultural products based on new ideas and awareness of the socio-cultural requirements as an important duty of cultural organizations in Iran.

Ayatollah Khamenei also described giving attention to the taste of the audience in cultural and propagation related activities as one of these requirements, adding, “The language you use to communicate with a young person is different from the language you use to talk to an ignorant, or antagonistic person. In the same way, the language of speaking and preaching in other countries should be different in nature to the kind of cultural-propagation work that is being implemented inside the country, in Revolutionary institutes and organizations included.”

TEHRAN (Iran News) –Addressing the inauguration ceremony of the 6th edition of the exhibition of Iran’s export capabilities, held in Tehran on Saturday, Raisi said the event attests to the fact that Iran is unsanctionable.

“Sanctions on the Islamic Iran with the steely resolve of its people have never yielded results and won’t do so in the future either,” he said.

The president said the exhibition indicates that the “evil plots to isolate Iran” have gone nowhere since Iran is offering the world numerous innovations in various fields thanks to its physical and spiritual resources and the determined, efficient, and innovative workforce.

He also lauded young Iranian experts for turning the threat of sanctions into an opportunity.

“Sanctions are indeed a non-military war imposed to prevent nations from achieving their aspirations and goals,” the president said.

He added that US officials have formally conceded that the policy of maximum pressures on Iran has ended in dismal failure.

In remarks at a meeting with Iranian workers on April 24, Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyed Ali Khamenei said the true intentions behind Iran’s enemies imposing sanctions is to place the Islamic Republic in a challenging position and force it to align with colonial and imperialist agendas.

The Leader noted that the main goal of the US’s imposition of sanctions is to demand complete obedience and submission of the Iranian nation and the Islamic Republic in the political and economic fields. “They want Iran’s wealth, reputation and policies to be in America’s hands, as is the case with some other countries.

“However, it is evident that the Islamic system, Islamic devoutness, and the great, long-standing Islamic nation will never submit to such coercion,” the Leader underlined.

Ayatollah Khamenei viewed the damages to the country’s economy caused by the sanctions as a chance for talents and potentials to thrive, emphasizing that advancements in weaponry are a testament to the opportunities that have arisen.

TEHRAN (Iran News) –During a visit to Sri Lanka on Wednesday, Raisi inaugurated the multi-purpose Uma Oya complex, one of the largest projects completed by Iranian technical and engineering companies.

Describing the project as a symbol of solidarity, connection, and friendship between the two nations, the Iranian president said, “The operation of this dam, power plant and water transfer tunnel is a symbol of the realization of the will of two countries and two nations who want to rely on their native power to provide well-being and comfort.”

Referring to the financing of the project by Sri Lanka and the supply and transfer of technical and engineering services by Iran, Raisi said the complex provides drinking and agricultural water for 5,000 hectares of lands and brings a 120-megawatt power plant into operation.

“Today, the Islamic Republic of Iran is implementing large water and electricity projects in more than 20 countries around the world, relying on local technical and engineering capabilities,” the president noted, his official website reported.

“The Islamic Republic of Iran is ready to be a partner in the development of Sri Lanka and to share with you all its experiences, which are the result of 45 years of efforts of Iranian men and women, and to participate in the development of Sri Lanka by sharing its technical and engineering services,” the president stated.

Highlighting Iran’s policy of close relations with the Asian, neighboring and independent countries, he noted, “Strengthening the relationship between we and you and other aligned and independent countries can create a bright future for the two countries and two nations.”