Washington (National Times) The United States expressed its “official condolences” Monday for the death of Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi and other officials in a helicopter crash, the State Department said.

“As Iran selects a new president, we reaffirm our support for the Iranian people and their struggle for human rights and fundamental freedoms,” department spokesman Matthew Miller said in a statement.

US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said he did not have insight into the cause of the helicopter crash that killed Raisi, adding that he did not necessarily see any broader impact on regional security.
“I can’t speculate on what may have been the cause,” Austin told reporters.

State Department battles against criticism over condolences for Raisi’s death

The US State Department found itself playing defence on Monday after a spokesman offered “official condolences” for the death of Iran’s Ebrahim Raisi, alleged to have been responsible for ordering the murders of Iranian dissidents and brutal crackdowns on protesters.

Matthew Miller was sharply questioned by reporters at his daily briefing over the statement, which bore his name and was released minutes before the briefing took place.

In his response, he noted that the US had made similar statements after the deaths of other leaders with bloody records, such as Josef Stalin.

He also insisted that the statement “in no way- in no way at all undermines” the State Department’s criticism of the Iranian government on issues of human rights and US opposition to Iranian support for various militant groups across the Middle East.