Mohammad Mokhber named Iran's acting president
TEHRAN, May 20, 2024
Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has appointed the first vice president, Mohammad Mokhber, as the acting President, following the deadly copter crash which killed President Ebrahim Raisi and the country’s Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian, said media reports.
Besides Raisi and Amirabdollahian, the copter had on board the governor of Iran’s East Azerbaijan province, a senior cleric from Tabriz, a Revolutionary Guard official and three crew members, when it crashed in thick fog, reported IRNA.
State TV gave no immediate cause for the crash that occurred in Iran’s East Azerbaijan province. Footage released by IRNA showed what the agency described as the crash site, across a steep valley in a green mountain range.
Khamenei quickly named Mokhber as caretaker in line with the constitution, which says a new presidential election should be called within 50 days, reported AP.
Emirati news agency Wam said Iran had begun the process of transferring power following the deadly crash.
"Vice-president Mohammad Mokhber has assumed the presidency of Iran for a period of 50 days starting from today, based on constitutional provisions that grant the Supreme Leader the right to issue a decree authorising all powers to the first deputy of the Iranian president as the acting president of the country within the legal period of 50 days."
Consequently, the interim president has appointed Ali Bagheri as acting foreign minister, it stated.
