he was “a true friend of Russia”

Israel denies any involvement in the death of Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi in the plane crash. “It’s not us” – leads Reuters from an unnamed Israeli official.

Raisi was known as a hardliner against Israel, whose existence Tehran does not recognize. Iran provides support to radical Islamist groups at war with Israel. In April, Iran carried out an unprecedented attack directly on Israel, firing hundreds of drones and missiles, allegedly in retaliation for the killing of a senior Iranian military officer. The vast majority of drones and missiles were shot down by Israel and its allies.

The Palestinian group Hamas, which is at war with Israel (recognized as terrorist in the US and EU), the radical Lebanese group Hezbollah, the Houthis who control the capital of Yemen, and other pro-Iranian groups in the Middle East expressed condolences over the death of Raisi, who, like Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Abdollahian, died on May 19 in a helicopter crash. In Lebanon, where Hezbollah has a strong position, three days of mourning have been declared. Mourning was also declared in Pakistan and Iran itself.

Russian leaders also expressed condolences over the death of Raisi. President Vladimir Putin said he would “always preserve the brightest memory” of Raisi and called him “a true friend of Russia.” Similar rhetoric is contained in the condolences of Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov. The President and head of the Iranian Foreign Ministry have always been known in Russia as true friends, he said.

Belarusian authoritarian leader Alexander Lukashenko also called the deceased president “a friend of Belarus.” Condolences were expressed by the leaders of other countries that occupy positions close to Iran in the international arena, such as Syria and Venezuela. China, through the mouth of Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi, expressed “deep sorrow.”

Iran’s neighbors – Türkiye, Azerbaijan, Armenia, Iraq – expressed their condolences.

President of the European Council Charles Michel on behalf of the EU expressed “deep sympathy” in connection with the death of the President of Iran and all 8 people who were on the helicopter. “Our thoughts are with the families of the victims,” he tweeted. The United States, which does not have diplomatic relations with Iran, has not yet officially commented on Raisi’s death.

Ebrahim Raisi became the President of Iran in 2021. He was considered a hardliner in both foreign and domestic policy. He visited Russia several times, and Vladimir Putin also came to Tehran. After the start of Russia’s large-scale invasion of Ukraine, Iran began supplying Russia with Shahed-type attack drones (officially, the Iranian authorities deny this). Tehran did not directly declare support for Russia in the war.