Iran asks for prayers for President Ebrahim Raisi as search crews travel on foot to site of helicopter crash: report

Iranians were asked to pray across the country on Sunday as search crews, traveling on foot due to unpaved, muddy roads, attempted to reach the site of Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi's heliopter crash in East Azerbaijan. Drones were also employed in the search.

It was reported that the official Instagram of the president asked for prayers for both himself and those who were aboard the helicopter with him. Fars News Agency also called for the public to pray for the president.

The Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei also called for prayers, saying "We hope that God returns the honourable president and his companions to the arms of the nation. All must pray for the health of this group of civil servants. The Iranian nation must not be concerned or worried, there will be no disruption in the work of the country," Al Jazeera reports.

The search for the helicopter in the mountainous region was hampered by adverse weather conditions, Al Jazeera reports, which included heavy fog. They reported further that "uncertainty" is spreading throughout Iran.

"Nobody knows what exactly has happened and how the president and other local officials, because the situation is quite complicated," senior researcher with Center for Middle East Strategic Studies Abas Aslani told the outlet. "As time goes on, hopes are decreasing because the conditions are getting much worse and it’s getting darker. What is being felt here in Tehran is mostly that feeling of uncertainty."

The last known photo of the helicopter was shared to X, taken by Saeid Sadeghi. The helicopter suffered what has been called a "hard landing" in the region of East Azrbaijan, Iran's state media reported.