Iran declares five days of mourning after president Raisi's death in helicopter crash

Iran has declared five days of mourning, after president Ebrahim Raisi was killed in a helicopter crash, together with foreign minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian. Authorities had lost contact with their aircraft as it flew through bad weather in East Azerbaijan province. This has left a gaping hole in the country's highest echelons of power. Executive leadership has been passed to first vice president Mohammad Mokhber, while the government scrambles to hold presidential elections within 50 days.