Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has appointed Vice President Mohammad Mokhber as acting president in the wake of Ebrahim Raisi’s death in a helicopter crash. The Supreme Leader also ordered five days of national mourning for Mr. Raisi, who had held the presidency since 2021.
According to protocol, Mokhber had been expected to become an interim President. New elections will now have to be held within 50 days. The helicopter carrying Raisi and other senior officials was forced to a hard landing due to dense fog in the mountainous terrain.
