Azerbaijan has accused Iran of a drone attack on its territory that injured four civilians.
Azerbaijan’s Foreign Ministry said an Iranian drone crashed near the airport in Nakhchivan, and another one hit near a school.
The Defense Ministry said that four drones were fired by Iran toward Nakhchivan, and while one was disabled by Azerbaijani forces, the others targeted civilian facilities — including a school where classes were underway.
It was unclear if it was deliberate or an accident. The country’s Prosecutor General’s office said that four people were injured.
Nakhchivan is separated from the rest of Azerbaijan by a swath of Armenia about 40 kilometers (25 miles) wide. Nakhchivan accounts for about 6% of the country’s territory, bordering Azerbaijan’s close ally Turkey and Iran.
Also, the Foreign Ministry said that Iran’s “actions contradict the norms and principles of international law and contribute to increased tension in the region,” and summoned the Iranian ambassador to lodge a protest.
Baku demanded that Iran “provide an explanation and take the necessary urgent measures to prevent the recurrence of such incidents,” the statement said.
However, Iran’s General staff of the armed forces denied that it had launched a drone toward Azerbaijan’s territory. Iran has repeatedly denied targeting oil infrastructure and other civilian targets in the war, despite its drone and missile fire hitting those sites.
The incident highlighted Azerbaijan’s complicated relationship with neighboring Iran, at a time when Baku also has developed military and economic ties with Israel.
Iran has grown increasingly concerned about the US and Israel potentially leveraging the Islamic Republic’s various minority ethnic groups to destabilize the country as it comes under attack.
Iran has a large Azeri population and Tehran has accused Baku of allowing Israeli intelligence to operate from there. Azerbaijan, in turn, has sought to give assurances that its territory won’t be used for an attack on “neighborly and friendly” Iran.
Azerbaijan in recent years has developed ties with Israel and the United States, with Iran’s influence in the South Caucasus region diminishing. US President Donald Trump hosted President Ilham Aliyev and other top officials at the White House last year for a three-way summit with Armenia.
In recent days, however, Baku appeared to try to assuage any concerns Iran might have over its ties with Israel and its possible role in the war, which began Feb. 28 when the US and Israel unleashed a series of strikes and killed Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
Aliyev was among world leaders who sent a message of condolence over Khamenei’s killing to Pezeshkian. Yesterday, Aliyev visited the Iranian Embassy in Baku to offer his condolences personally to Ambassador Mojtaba Demirchilou.
On Sunday, Azerbaijan’s Foreign Minister Jeyhun Bayramov spoke with his Iranian counterpart, Abbas Araghchi and expressed “serious concern over the tragic escalation of the situation in the region.”
He also said that he hoped for “the prompt cessation of military actions” and stressed that Azerbaijan’s territory “cannot be used by any country against neighboring and friendly Iran.”
Azerbaijan Vows To Retaliate
President Ilham Aliyev accused Iran of carrying out “a groundless act of terror and aggression,” and said that his military has been told to prepare and implement retaliatory measures.
He was reported as saying at a meeting of his country’s Security Council, “We will not tolerate this groundless act of terror and aggression committed against Azerbaijan.”
“Iranian officials must provide an explanation to the Azerbaijani side, an apology must be offered, and those who committed this terrorist act must be held criminally liable.”
Ilham Aliyev
He said Azerbaijan’s military has been instructed “to prepare and implement retaliatory measures.”
Aliyev stressed that Azerbaijan “is not participating in operations against Iran, neither previously nor this time, and will not do so.”
He added, “We have neither interest in conducting any operations against neighboring countries, nor does our policy allow it.”
The Defence Ministry vowed that Iran’s “attacks will not go unanswered,” adding that it was preparing the “necessary response” to protect “the territorial integrity and sovereignty of our country, ensure the safety of civilians and civilian infrastructure.” It didn’t elaborate.
Turkey also condemned the attack, with its Foreign Ministry urging a halt to strikes that target “third countries in the region and increase the risk of the war spreading.”
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