Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi and his foreign minister died when their helicopter crashed as it was crossing mountain terrain in heavy fog, an Iranian official told news agency Reuters.

The servant of Iranian nation, Ayatollah Ebrahim Raisi has achieved the highest level of martyrdom whilst serving the people,” state television said today. The incident occurred during President Raisi’s return flight to the Iranian city Tabriz after he and Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev inaugurated the Qiz Qalasi Dam on their shared border. Video footage of the crash site can be viewed here.

The helicopter, carrying the 63-year-old President Raisi, Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian, and other officials, lost contact approximately 30 minutes into the flight. This sparked immediate concerns and a massive search and rescue operation.

Initial reports from Iran’s state media described the situation as an “accident.” Iran’s Deputy President for Executive Affairs Mohsen Mansouri said that two members of the president’s entourage had contacted rescue teams, suggesting that the incident might not have been catastrophic.