Three Americans have been reportedly listed among suspects responsible for Sunday’s coup attempt in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).

Sylvain Ekenge, DRC army spokesperson, said the attempt involved “foreigners and Congolese”.

“These foreigners and Congolese have been put out of action, including their leader,” Ekenge said, adding that several suspects were detained and that the situation is now under control.

The army spokesperson did not provide further information concerning the incident.

Lucy Tamyln, US ambassador to the DRC, said she was shocked and very concerned to receive reports of American citizens being involved.

Pictures of two men with their hands clasped were published in local media, alongside pictures of a passport that indicated one was a 36-year-old US citizen born in Maryland.

“Please be assured that we will cooperate with the DRC authorities to the fullest extent as they investigate these criminal acts and hold accountable any U.S. citizen involved in criminal acts,” Tamlyn tweeted.

The army’s announcement of successfully thwarting a coup attempt came hours after armed men attacked the house of Vital Kamerhe, former chief of staff and close ally of President Felix Tshisekedi.

Kamerhe’s residence is about two kilometres from the presidential palace.
Michel Muhima, Kamerhe’s spokesperson, had said the gunmen clad in military uniform engaged the politician’s guards in a shootout, leaving three people dead.

Iran’s first vice president, Mohammad Mokhber, is expected to assume the presidency after Ebrahim Raisi’s death in a helicopter crash as the country gears up for early elections.

The Iranian constitution stipulates that the first vice president take over “in the event of the president’s death, dismissal, resignation, absence or illness for more than two months”.

Raisi, who died on Sunday along with Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian and other officials, was nearing the end of his first four-year term as president.

Mokhber’s interim appointment requires the approval of Iran’s supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who has the final word in all state affairs.

Presidential elections to pick a permanent successor are to be held within 50 days, according to the constitution.

A council made up of the parliament speaker, head of the judiciary and the vice president are to be tasked with organising the national vote.

Mokhber, 68, was appointed vice president as Raisi took office in August 2021.

The vice president was born in Dezful city in the southwestern province of Khuzestan, where he held several official positions.

For years since 2007, Mokhber chaired the Execution of Imam Khomeini’s Order, a governmental organisation tasked with managing properties confiscated following the 1979 Islamic revolution.

The foundation, established in the 1980s, has over the years grown to become a major state economic conglomerate with shares in various sectors.

Iranians head to the polls for presidential elections every four years since the Islamic Republic’s first vote in 1980.

The constitution sets a two-term limit for Iranian presidents.

The position of prime minister does not exist in Iran, and the president — assisted by several vice presidents — is responsible for appointing and directing the cabinet.

Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi has been confirmed dead in a helicopter crash.

The chopper, which also had Hossein Amirabdollahian, foreign minister; Malek Rahmati, governor of East Azarbaijan province; and Hojjatoleslam Al Hashem, Tabriz Friday prayer leader onboard, crash-landed Sunday afternoon in the Varzaqan region.

Search and rescue teams scoured the mountainous terrain amid heavy fog overnight, and found the wreckage early Monday.

Raisi, 63, was elected president on his second attempt in 2021.

He was regarded as a potential successor to Ayatollah Khamenei, the country’s supreme leader, who has held the position since 1989.

In 2019, Khamenei appointed Raisi as head of the judiciary.

Raisi was also deputy chairman of the Assembly of Experts — the 88-member clerical body responsible for electing the next supreme leader.

State media report that the Iranian government held an emergency meeting after the president and some members of the cabinet were confirmed dead on Monday.

Vice President Mohammad Mokhber led the emergency meeting.