Iran Sets Presidential Election Date in June

Iran International has ended this edition of the live blog following the helicopter crash that killed Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi, Foreign Minister Amir-Abdollahian and other high-level officials on Sunday.

The helicopter was flying in foggy conditions in the country's northwest by the border with Azerbaijan.

In the wake of Raisi's death, VP Mohammad Mokhber has been appointed as acting president. Ali Bagheri Kani, who led Iranian delegations though indirect negotiations with the US over nuclear issues, has been appointed acting foreign minister.

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Asked about reports of Iranian people celebrating the death of President Raisi, US State Department spokesperson said Monday, "I can certainly understand why people inside Iran would feel that way."

"When you look at the brutal repression that happened under President Raisi's tenure, especially when you look at his abuse of women and girls, I can see why the people in Iran would feel that way in response to his death, but I obviously can't speak for them," Matthew Miller told reporters in a press briefing.

The Biden administration was "asked for assistance by the Iranian government" amid Tehran's efforts to find the wreckage of President Ebrahim Raisi's doomed chopper, the US State Department spokesman told reporters.

"We did make clear to them that we would offer assistance, as we'd do in response to any request by a foreign gov't in this sort of situation, but ultimately, we were not able to provide the assistance largely for logistical reasons," Matthew Miller told reporters.

Iran's government says the funeral for President Ebrahim Raisi and other victims of the chopper crash will be held in Tehran on Wednesday.

All government offices and private businesses in the country will be closed on Wednesday to coincide with funerals for crash victims.

The victims' bodies are currently in the city of Tabriz, where a funeral will be held on Tuesday.

They will later be transferred to the city of Qom for another funeral on Tuesday afternoon.

On Wednesday, the main funeral will be held in Tehran, where Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei will say the prayers for the dead.

Then Raisi's body will be transferred to northeastern city of Birjand - which he represented in the Assembly of Experts - for another funeral on Thursday morning.

Finally, his body will be transferred to Mashhad where he will be buried after a final funeral on Thursday afternoon.

US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin told reporters during a briefing on Tuesday that "Regrading the death of the Iranian president in the very unfortunate helicopter crash, we continue to monitor the situation but we don't have any insights into the cause of the accident." Asked again if the incident was anything other than an accident, Austin refused to speculate, saying everyone should wait to see if Iran's investigation would turn up anything.

Austin added that the Pentagon does not see any broader impact and security implications emanating from the incident.

The Iranian government's newspaper says the presidential election calendar has been approved in a meeting chaired by interim president Mohammad Mokhber. Raisi who was on Sunday in a helicopter crash was elected president in June 2021.

The election day is set for June 28. Candidate registration will be from May 30 to June 3 with campaigning from June 12 to 27.

Iran’s exiled prince Reza Pahlavi has issued a statement about Raisi following his death, underlining that he was “one of the cruelest and most notorious leaders of the Islamic Republic regime.”

The leading Iranian opposition figure said on X that Raisi “was involved in the business of death, execution, and crime, with his hands soaked in the blood of thousands of Iranians.”

He pointed out that it is no surprise that the families of Raisi's victims are rejoicing at his death today.

“In memory of each and every victim of Ebrahim Raisi, we double our efforts for the freedom and reclaiming of our homeland, knowing that the world will be a better place without the Islamic Republic and its criminal leaders.”

The US expressed its "official condolences" Monday for the death of Iran's President Raisi a

nd other officials in a helicopter crash. "As Iran selects a new president, we reaffirm our support for the Iranian people and their struggle for human rights and fundamental freedoms," the State Department spokesman said in a statement.

Ebrahim Raisi will be honored with funeral processions in Tabriz, Qom, Tehran, Birjand, and Mashhad, according to Mohsen Mansouri, the executive deputy of the administration.

The ceremonies will culminate with a burial at the Imam Reza shrine in Mashhad on the evening of Friday, May 24th. The schedule includes several processions across the cities.