Ebrahim Raisi’s death in helicopter crash: What Comes Next?
Ebrahim Raisi’s death | News Blog | Updated June 05 2024
Ebrahim Raisi’s death: It is sad especially that Iran recently had to go through a rather disturbing event in the form of death of President Ebrahim Raisi in a helicopter crash on May 19,2024. The tragedy brings a feeling of sorrow across the nation and they are mourning over the lost lives. Seven other officials were also on the helicopter that was involved in this mishap and they died, its foreign minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian among them. This event resulted in a quick political reaction, and the political leadership of Iran and its politics is becoming questionable. Here is a need to know guide to the ongoing developments and what the future looks like for Iran and the Middle East as a whole.
Key Takeaways
Event: It could be recalled that President Ebrahim Raisi passed away in a heli-copter crash with seven other individuals on 19 May 2024.
Immediate Response: Iran has launched a five-day window for registration of, presidential candidates with voting set for June 28, 2024.
Political Impact: The death of Raisi has created competition amongst the conservatives and the reformists to pen the choice of the next leader of Iran.
International Implications: The arguing happened at a time when the relationship between the two countries is tensed up and they are in conflict within the region.
The Immediate Aftermath
Muslims of Iran are in shock by the death of their President Ebrahim Raisi. To restore stability in the country’s political scenario, the leadership decides to perform the presidential responsibilities by the acting president Mohammad Mokhber; the vice president of Iran. It is also the election for the president seat which will take place on 28 th of June in the year 2024. The Ministry of Interior has set a five day window to allow anyone interested into the presidency to come forward. The Guardian Council will review the list of candidates and the list will be released by June 11, 2024.
Political Ramifications
Besides politico-economic consequences of this event, there are many political consequences as well. This was because as well as being the president of Iran Ebrahim Raisi was considered to be a possible successor to Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. Thus, with the death of Ruhollah Khomeini, Iran has reached the stage more uncertainty in its development. The Guardian Council with its conservative screening has to perform the task of defining who will participate in the race for the presidency. Future election is likely to be intense: the names of such potential candidates as Mohammad Ahmadinejad who used to be a hard-line president, and Mohammad Khatami who used to be a reformist president, are being mentioned.
Economic and Social Context
The social and economical loss caused by this event is enormous as we know the current situation in Middle East. Some of the issues that relate to this concept are that the economy of Iran is in a poor and diminishing state, and inflation and crashing of the Iranian toman. During his presidency, Raisi faced major economic challenges and protests for, inter alia, Mahsa Amini’s death in 2022. The challenges discussed above will be transferred to the new president along with the problem of functioning at the time of sanctions and internal protest actions.
International Relations and Security
Raisi’s death occurs at a time when there is hostility between Iran and the United States as well as the continuing unrest in the Middle East. In this case, Iran will have to look on both internal and external security. This is because there are possibilities of protest being staged against the government. There are also international issues, Iran has been processing uranium to the levels close to weapon grade, and has supplied Russia in their conflict with Ukraine. It has also attacked Israel and remains a patron to other proxies including Yemen’s Houthi and Lebanon’s Hezbollah. New president will face these challenging international politics while at the same time dealing with internal affairs. The west will see it as an opportunity to advance their agenda as they have seen it for the case of Libya. US will look to struck deal with Saudi Arabia, US and Israel.
Future Prospects
The next election will therefore be a test for the political maturity of Iran and the populace’s confidence in the electoral systems. As the turnout of the voter is at its lowest record the government has to grapple with the problem of voting an inactive public. The new president will also be in a close relationship with the Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei who has the final say on state issues. But for the regime, Election can be quite a terrifying time indeed. If the prevailing trend in the public opinion becomes too negative, election day can become a protest, and even result in the overthrow of the government.
In conclusion, the above-said experience has placed Iran in great political instability. Future of this nation, its direction, both internally and externally is hinged on the next elections.
Bibliography:
“Iran opens Presidential Election Registration After Ebrahim Raisi’s Death in a Helicopter Crash.” NBC News. Last modified May 30, 2024. www.nbcnews.com/news/world/iran-presidential-election-registration-ebrahim-raisi-helicopter-crash-rcna154634
“Reuters.com.” Reuters.com. Accessed June 13, 2024. https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/iran-registers-presidential-candidates-early-vote-after-raisis-death-2024-05-30/.