Azerbaijan announced on Thursday that it is preparing to retaliate after two people were injured this morning after Iranian drones struck an airport and a school nearby. Azeri authorities confirmed that the drone attack took place in the Nakhichevan region and announced that they reserve the right to take an “appropriate response”, despite Iran’s denial that it was behind the attack.
“The Islamic Republic of Iran bears the entire responsibility for the incident. The Ministry of Defense of the Republic of Azerbaijan prepares necessary retaliatory measures to defend the country’s territorial integrity and sovereignty, as well as to ensure the security of civilians and civilian infrastructure. These acts of aggression will not remain unanswered”, said Azerbaijan’s Defence Ministry in a statement.
According to Azeri officials, quoted by Al-Jazeera, a drone strike from Iran targeted the autonomous enclave of Nakhichevan – an Azerbaijani autonomous enclave located between Armenia, Iran and Türkiye – which, if confirmed, would open a new front in the ongoing war in the Middle East initiated by the US and Israel and the subsequent retaliation launched by Tehran after the death of Ayatollah Khamenei.
Azerbaijan demands a “clear and immediate explanation“
Azerbaijan’s foreign ministry said in a statement that the incident occurred around noon on Thursday (09:00 CET). According to the official note issued by the Baku government, a drone hit the terminal building of the main airport of the Autonomous Republic of Nakhichevan, while another UAV fell near a school building in the town of Shekerabad (Şəkərəbad), a village located between the airport and the capital of the enclave. The attack left two civilians injured and caused material damage to the airport.
Following the incident, Azerbaijan’s foreign ministry immediately summoned Iran’s ambassador to Baku, Mojtaba Demirchilou, demanding “within the shortest possible timeframe, a clear explanation” from Tehran, while stressing that the Caucasian country “reserves the right to take appropriate response measures“.
Iran denies involvement in attack
Iran’s deputy foreign minister Kazem Gharibabadi, however, later denied that his country had been involved in a drone attack on territory in the autonomous republic of Nakhichevan (Nakhchivan). “The Islamic Republic of Iran has not targeted the Republic of Azerbaijan,” Gharibabadi was quoted as saying by Iran’s Tasnim news agency.
“We do not target our neighbouring countries. Iran’s policy is only to strike the military bases of its enemies” used to launch attacks against Iran, including those of the United States and Israel, the Iranian foreign minister added. A day before this incident with Azerbaijan, a ballistic missile launched by Iran against territory of Turkey, and which would have been aimed at the US air base of İncirlik – located in the Turkish province of Adana – was intercepted by NATO troops over Syrian airspace, in an operation in which the Patriot missile battery deployed by Spain in the base took part, and in which Tehran also denied its involvement.
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Edited and reviewed by:
Pablo Gómez is a specialist in Turkey and has been editor-in-chief of Hispanatolia since 2011. He has been analysing current affairs and geopolitics in Turkey and the surrounding region since 2006.
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