Dubai:

Iran started on Thursday registration of candidates for an early election next month following the death of President Ebrahim Raisi in a helicopter crash, Iranian Interior Minister Ahmad Vahidi told state TV.

Once seen as a possible successor to Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Iran’s ageing ultimate decision-maker, Raisi’s sudden death has triggered a race among hardliners to influence the selection of Iran’s next leader.

After the five-day registration period, the Guardian Council, which oversees elections and legislation, will vet the candidates running for the presidency.

“The vetting process will be seven days and then qualified candidates will have almost two weeks for the election campaign,” Vahidi told state TV. The Guardian Council will publish the list of qualified candidates on June 11.

Moderate politicians have accused the 12-member hardline Guardian Council of disqualifying rivals to hardline candidates, who are expected to dominate the upcoming presidential race.

Turnout may be hit by restricted choice on the ballot and rising discontent over an array of political, social and economic crises.

Within Iran’s complex mix of clerical rulers and elected officials, Khamenei has the final say on all state matters such as nuclear and foreign policies. But the elected president will be in charge of tackling worsening economic hardship.

The registration of candidates could include Parviz Fattah, a former Guards member who heads an investment fund linked to the leader, and Saeed Jalili, a former chief nuclear negotiator who in 2001 ran Khamenei’s office for four years, insiders said.

Interim President Mohammad Mokhber and former parliament speaker and a Khamenei adviser, Ali Larijani, have also been mentioned in Iranian media as possible candidates. Larijani was barred from standing in the 2021 presidential race.

Several low-key moderate politicians are likely to enter the race.

(This story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)

Tehran:

 The General Staff of Iran’s Armed Forces has released the first report on the causes of a recent helicopter crash that resulted in the deaths of Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi and his entourage.

Following the crash, a senior investigation committee composed of experts, specialists, and technicians arrived at the scene on Monday morning, the semi-official Tasnim news agency quoted the report by the General Staff of Iran’s Armed Forces as saying on Friday.

According to the report, the helicopter had remained on its predetermined course all along the way and had not deviated from the flight route.

Nearly one minute and a half before the incident, the pilot of the crashed helicopter had contacted the other two helicopters of the President’s convoy, the report said.

No trace of bullets or similar items have been detected on the wreckage of the crashed helicopter, it added as quoted by Xinhua news agency report.

After crashing into the mountain, the helicopter had caught fire, it said.

“Complications of the region, fog, and low temperature” had caused the search and rescue operations to continue until nightfall and then throughout the night, the report said, adding, “At 5 a.m. local time on Monday, with the assistance of drones, the exact location of the incident was identified.”

No suspicious issue had been detected in the conversations between the watchtower and the flight crew, it added.

More details would be provided after further investigations, it said.

Raisi and his entourage were en route to East Azerbaijan province when the helicopter carrying them crashed in a mountainous area on Sunday.

Also on board the helicopter were Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian and Mohammad Ali Ale-Hashem, the representative of Iran’s Supreme Leader to East Azerbaijan.

Raisi was laid to rest on Thursday in the holy shrine of Imam Reza in his hometown, the northeastern city of Mashhad.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)