Iran government says will operate 'without disruption' after Raisi death

The Iranian government will continue to operate "without the slightest disruption" following the death of president Ebrahim Raisi in a helicopter crash, said a cabinet statement.

Mr Raisi, a hardliner long seen as a potential successor to Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, was killed in a crash in mountainous terrain near the Azerbaijan border.

The charred wreckage of the helicopter which crashed yesterday carrying Mr Raisi and Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian was found early this morning after an overnight search in blizzard conditions.

"President Raisi, the foreign minister and all the passengers in the helicopter were killed in the crash," a senior Iranian official told Reuters, asking not to be named because of the sensitivity of the matter.

Mr Raisi's death was later confirmed in a statement on social media by Vice President Mohsen Mansouri and on state television.

State TV reported that images from the site showed the aircraft slammed into a mountain peak, although there was no official word on the cause of the crash.