Iran’s supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has assigned Vice President Mohammad Mokhber to assume interim duties after the death of President Ebrahim Raisi in a helicopter crash a day earlier.
“In accordance with Article 131 of the constitution, Mokhber is in charge of leading the executive branch,” said Khamenei in a statement, adding that Mokhber will be required to work with the heads of legislative and judicial to prepare for presidential elections “within a maximum period of 50 days”.
Khamenei said that Vice President Mohammad Mokhber will assume interim duties and has 50 days to arrange elections in coordination with the heads of judiciary and legislative branches, state news agency IRNA reported.
Raisi died after his helicopter crashed in a mountainous region of the country. Rescue teams had been scouring the area since Sunday afternoon after a helicopter carrying Raisi, the foreign minister and other officials had gone missing.
Early Monday, relief workers located the missing helicopter, with state TV saying the president had died.
Iran’s vice president for executive affairs Mohsen Mansouri posted on X a Koranic verse used to express condolences.
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