'LIFE AT RISK'
Chilling footage shows Iran’s president Ebrahim Raisi in helicopter moments before crash as fog hampers frantic search
The controversial leader is feared dead as search crews struggle to reach the crash site
CHILLING footage shows Iran's missing president in a helicopter moments before it crashed.
Ebrahim Raisi is seen in the video from inside a chopper before his disappearance on Sunday as rain and fog hamper drastic search efforts for the controversial leader.
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His panicked aides have warned Raisi's life is "at risk" as Iran's allies - including Russia - scramble support for the hunt.
The Hamas-backing president, 63, had been at the Azerbaijani border to inaugurate the Qiz-Qalasi Dam before the crash.
Raisi was travelling with the governor of East Azerbaijan province and Foreign Minister Hossein Amir Abdollahian in a convoy of three choppers.
But the other two helicopters landed safely at their destination as Raisi's disappeared.
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It sparked a mammoth search operation - with teams scouring the mountainous area while grappling with severe weather conditions.
SUVs were sent racing through wooded areas while a rescue chopper attempted to reach the likely crash site.
It was unable to land due to heavy mist - prompting Turkey to send a drone to aid search efforts.
Iranian state TV stopped all regular programming to air prayers and also showed what is understood to be the last footage of Raisi before the crash.
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In the clip, the leader is seen looking out of the window, with an unidentified member of his delegation sat opposite him.
The helicopter is reported to have vanished from the radar amid thick fog.
The incident is believed to have happened near Jolfa - a city on the border with Azerbaijan, some 375 miles northwest of Tehran.
An Iranian official said the entire army and Iranian guard resources had been summoned to hunt for Raisi and warned his life is "at risk".
"We are still hopeful but information coming from the crash site is very concerning," the official said.
Hours after the crash, Reuters news agency quoted state media as saying Raisi's chopper was discovered by search and rescue teams.
But moments later, Iran's Red Crescent denied the report.
Iranian state news agency IRNA has since reported that although the site of the presumed crash has not yet been found, the search area is narrowing and now has a 2km radius.
Iranian TV has shown footage of rescuers walking up steep slopes in driving rain and darkness.
It comes after an Iranian official said contact had been made with one of the passengers and one of the crew members of the President's helicopter on several occasions amid the search.
Iranian state media said bad weather was the cause of the crash and had complicated the rescue mission, with a rescue helicopter unable to land.
Search efforts have reportedly been concentrated around a copper mine where visibility is currently less than five metres.
At least 40 rescue teams have been deployed to the crash site.
The chief of staff of Iran's army ordered all the resources of the army and the elite Revolutionary Guard to be put to use in search and rescue operations.
"It is dark and it has started raining, but the search continues," a local reporter told state TV.
";Rescue teams have reached the area ... however, the rain has created mud, making the search difficult."
Iran's interior minister, Ahmed Vahidi, said Raisi was on his way back from the inauguration event "when the helicopter carrying him had a hard landing due to the foggy weather in the area".
The crash comes at a time of growing dissent within Iran over an array of political, social and economic crises.
What happens if an Iranian president is incapacitated or dies in office?
Below is a brief outline of what Iran's constitution says happens if a president is incapacitated or dies in office:
* According to article 131 of the Islamic Republic's constitution, if a president dies in office the first vice president takes over, with the confirmation of the supreme leader, who has the final say in all matters of state.
* A council consisting of the first vice president, the speaker of parliament and the head of the judiciary must arrange a election for a new president within a maximum period of 50 days.
Ebrahim Raisi was elected president in 2021 and, under the current timetable, presidential elections are due to take place in 2025.
Footage even shows people setting off fireworks, reportedly in response to news of the crash.
Meanwhile, in Tehran, dozens have gathered in Valiasr Square to pray for their president.
Reports claim riot police are gathering on the streets in the capital and the city of Rasht, with the suggestion they will be used to quell celebrations if Raisi's death is announced in the morning.
Raisi secured a victory during the 2021 presidential election, which saw the lowest turnout in the country's history.
Since taking office he has ordered a tightening of morality laws, overseen a bloody crackdown on anti-government protests and pushed hard in nuclear talks with world powers.
It comes weeks after Iran unleashed an unprecedented drone-and-missile attack on Jerusalem which was branded "a declaration of war" by Israel.
More than 300 drones and missiles were launched at Israel by Iran and its proxy groups in Lebanon and Yemen - 99 per cent of which were intercepted, according to the Israeli military.
Despite the tensions, footage reportedly shows members of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps' Saberin Special Forces preparing to enter a forested area as part of the search.
Russian President Vladimir Putin is understood to be among world leaders to offer support.
He is reported to have ordered the deployment of two aircraft and 50 rescue personnel to Tabriz as part of the search effort.
Former UK defence minister Tobias Ellwood told Sky News: "It doesn't bode well when it takes so long to get in touch with what's happened."
He added that a lack of information from Iranian state media is concerning.
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The Tory MP said: "If the president was alive, it would confirm it straight away, but if he has died then they may be delaying any announcement to ensure contingency plans are in place."
He added the potential death of Riasi could mean there are "huge geopolitical consequences for Iran".
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