Iranian Prez Feared Dead as Rescuers Locate Remains of Crashed Helicopter

A search-and-rescue team looking for the remains of a crashed helicopter carrying Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi found the heavily damaged aircraft early Monday morning—but reported “no signs of life” were detected in the area and that “no survivors” had been found, according to state media.

No official death announcement has been made as of midnight Eastern Time, though one official told Reuters that Tehran was rapidly losing hope that Raisi, Foreign Minister Hossein Amir Abdollahian, and the seven other people on board were still alive—especially given the harsh terrain and freezing conditions in the northern mountains near the country’s border with Azerbaijan, where the helicopter went down.

“President Raisi’s helicopter was completely burned in the crash ... unfortunately, all passengers are feared dead,” the official said.

Read more at The Daily Beast.