Ebrahim Raisi, Iran's President, Dies in Helicopter Crash

14 December 1960 - 19 May 2024

Ebrahim Raisi, commonly known as Ebrahim Raisi (Persian: ابراهیم رئیسی‎), was an Iranian cleric, prosecutor, and politician who served as Iran's head of the judiciary from 2019 to 2021 and later as the country's president from 2021 until his death in 2024.

Raisi was born in Mashhad, Iran, on 14 December 1960. He studied Islamic law and jurisprudence at the University of Tehran and the Seminary of Qom. After the Iranian Revolution in 1979, Raisi held several positions in the Iranian judiciary, including prosecutor general of Tehran and head of the Special Court for Clerics.

In 2019, Raisi was appointed as head of the Iranian judiciary by Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei. As head of the judiciary, Raisi oversaw a crackdown on political opposition and human rights activists. He was also responsible for the execution of several political prisoners.

In 2021, Raisi was elected as Iran's president. He was seen as a hardline conservative and a potential successor to Khamenei. As president, Raisi continued to oversee a crackdown on political opposition and human rights activists. He also pursued a more confrontational foreign policy than his predecessor, Hassan Rouhani.

Raisi died in a helicopter crash on 19 May 2024. He was 63 years old. The helicopter was carrying Raisi and other senior Iranian officials to a meeting in the southeastern province of Kerman. The cause of the crash is under investigation.

Raisi's death has sent shockwaves through Iran and the wider region. He was a controversial figure, but he was also a powerful one. His death leaves a void in Iranian politics and it is unclear who will succeed him as president.