Tom Cotton slams Biden administration for offering 'condolences' for death of Iranian president

Arkansas Republican Sen. Tom Cotton slammed the Biden administration on Monday, for sending its "condolences" for the loss of Iranian President Ebrahaim Raisi, known as the "butcher of Tehran."

Raisi was among those killed in a helicopter crash late Sunday, on his return to Iran from a meeting in an East Azerbaijan province. The cause of the crash has been identified as a "technical failure."

The late Iranian president received his derogatory nickname of "Butcher" after he oversaw the deaths of up to 30,000 people, including children, in 1988, according to Tablet Magazine. 

"Under the 'Butcher of Tehran,' Iran armed and assisted terrorists with American blood on their hands," Cotton said in a post to X, after the State Department offered its condolences. "Offering condolences for the death of this monster is a disgrace."

Cotton has been a vocal critic of the Biden administration's response to the ongoing alleged human right violations in the Middle East. In January, Cotton claimed the Biden administration's "appeasement of Iran" led to the deaths of three United States servicemembers who were killed in Jordan by Iran-backed militants.

The State Department expressed its condolences for Raisi's death in a statement on Monday, but reaffirmed its support for the Iranian people. A new president will be elected within 50 days, but Mohammad Mokhber will serve as the interim president in the meantime. 

The Organization of Iranian American Communities (OIAC) told Just the News that the people who oppose the current Iranian regime are celebrating in Iran. 

"The Iranian people view him as a mass murderer involved in the massacre of 30,000 political prisoners in the summer of 1988, carried out by the Death Commission ... to murder all political prisoners in all prisons across Iran who remained loyal to the main Iranian opposition movement, the Mujahedin-e Khalq," OIAC Advisory Chair Dr. Ramesh Sepehrrad said in a statement. "Already there are many reports on social media from Iran showing how jubilant many are at just the prospect of his death as retribution for his crimes and what it means as a blow to [Supreme Leader Ruhollah] Khamenei's regime."

Misty Severi is an evening news reporter for Just the News. You can follow her on X for more coverage.