(Iran International) A helicopter crash on May 19 claimed the lives of Ebrahim Raisi, Iran’s eighth president, and his foreign minister, Hossein Amir-Abdollahian, leading to a series of consequential events.
Memorial services organized by the Iranian government globally in their honor faced significant criticism from opponents of the Islamic Republic, sparking widespread discontent and controversy.
In Washington, DC, a staff member of Iran’s Interests Section in the US exacerbated tensions. In a video circulated on social media, Ramezan Soltan-Mohammadi was observed making a threatening gesture towards protesters, leading to an extended restraining order against him by a US court on June 17.
This incident occurred on May 22 on the sideline of Raisi’s memorial service held by the Islamic Education Center (IEC) in Maryland, sparking renewed scrutiny into the ties between this sizeable mosque in Potomac and the Islamic Republic of Iran.