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Iranian President Raisi's helicopter crash

Crowds gather for Raisi’s farewell ceremony in Iran’s Qom — TV

On May 19, a helicopter carrying Raisi crashed in Iran's East Azerbaijan Province

© Iranian Presidency Office via AP

DUBAI, May 21. /TASS/. Crowds have gathered in the streets of the Iranian city of Qom for the farewell ceremony for the late President Ebrahim Raisi, according to footage aired live by the IRIB TV channel.

Coffins with the bodies of those killed in a helicopter crash were delivered to Qom, Iran’s religious center. Another farewell ceremony was earlier held in Tabriz, then the coffin with Raisi’s body was taken on a presidential plane to Tehran and later to Qom.

On May 19, a helicopter carrying Raisi crashed in Iran's East Azerbaijan Province. Among those on board were Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian, Governor of East Azerbaijan Province Malek Rahmati, and Mohammad Ali Ale-Hashem, imam of Friday Prayer in Tabriz. A commission was created to investigate the causes of the catastrophe. First Vice President Mohammed Mokhber became Iran’s interim president. The election has been slated for June 28.

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