President Cyril Ramaphosa joined the global community and the BRICS bloc in mourning the death of Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi and his Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian who died in an air crush on Sunday, 19 May 2024.
The duo, together with other officials who were with them died when the helicopter they were traveling in crushed in East Azerbaijan; they were traveling back to Iran from the border. Reports are that the weather was bad with heavy fog.
Ramaphosa offered his condolences to the Iranian people and the relatives of the deceased on behalf of South Africa.
“This is an extraordinary, unthinkable tragedy that has claimed a remarkable leader of a nation with whom South Africa enjoys strong bilateral relations and whom we were honoured to welcome to the BRICS fold in Johannesburg in 2023.
Our hearts go out to the affected families and the administration of the Islamic Republic of Iran. We join Iran in this moment of mourning,” said President Cyril Ramaphosa.