US Denies Iran’s Request for Assistance After President’s Helicopter Death

Iran sought “assistance” from the United States in the wake of the death of its president in a helicopter crash, a rare request that was ultimately turned down. Iran’s late president, Ebrahim Raisi, died in the May 19 crash near the Iran-Azerbaijan border. Iranian state media reported that seven other people aboard the Bell 212 helicopter—including Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian—also were killed. The cause of the crash remains unclear. “We were asked for assistance by the Iranian Government,” State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller said during a press briefing on May 20. “We did make clear to them that we would offer assistance, as we would do in response to any request by a foreign government in this sort of situation. And ultimately, we were not able to provide that assistance.”...