Azerbaijani authorities vehemently denied a CNN report claiming Israel carried out advanced intelligence and military operations from its territory during the war with Iran.
Israel and Azerbaijan have been known to be close allies since the 1990s, but a CNN report, citing four sources familiar with the matter, alleged a previously unknown element in their relationship on Friday. According to the report, Israel sent dozens of commandos and Mossad operatives to operate out of secret bases in southern Azerbaijan during the recent war with Iran, operations that extended into intelligence gathering and drone assassinations. It alleged that one of the most pivotal assassinations of the war, which killed Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps intelligence chief Rahman Moghaddam in the opening days of the conflict, was carried out by a drone operated out of Azerbaijan.
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Baku was quick to vehemently deny the report, with a direct response from Azerbaijan’s Foreign Ministry hours later that said the claims were “entirely baseless and are categorically rejected.”
“The publication of allegations based on anonymous sources, without presenting any credible evidence while disregarding Azerbaijan’s official position, runs contrary to the principles of objectivity, impartiality, and professional ethics in journalism,” the statement said.
“As has been stated on numerous occasions, allegations that Azerbaijan’s territory has been used by any third country for military operations, intelligence activities, or other hostile purposes against another state are completely unfounded. Azerbaijan has never allowed, and will never allow, its territory to be used for such purposes,” it added.
When reached for comment, the Embassy of Azerbaijan said it firmly rejects “unfounded claims regarding the alleged use of Azerbaijan’s territory for operations against third countries.”
The CNN report also claimed Israeli commandos operating out of southern Azerbaijan installed listening devices and other intelligence equipment to spy on Iran, beginning in mid-January. One Israeli base was located roughly 60 miles from the major city of Tabriz, which was targeted by Israel during the war.
The report claimed the Israeli presence in Azerbaijan was initially supposed to be limited to a base to rescue downed airmen and refuel Israeli air force jets. Notably, it said Azerbaijan may not have been aware of the expansion of operations.
Moghaddam, who was accused of plotting to assassinate President Donald Trump, was killed on March 4. The following day, Iranian drones hit Azerbaijan’s Nakhchivan International Airport, a move condemned in Baku and across the Middle East.
A popular Guard Telegram channel with over 500,000 followers claimed Guard credit for the strike, claiming it hit a section of the airport where “Zionist regime” and U.S. officers were planning attacks on Iran.
“The drone that was at the Nakhchivan Airport, specifically in a section where Zionist regime and American officers were planning and managing attacks on our country’s infrastructure, was crushed by an Arash-2 drone,” the March 5 message read, viewed by AzerNews. “The enemy sees this for themselves and must know that Iran does not joke or compromise with any party. With a 120 kg warhead and very high destructive power, it is utilized by the Army Ground Force. This was only a warning shot to the mercenary regime and the traitor of Baku.”
In an address after the attack, Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev gave a harsh denunciation of Iran, saying it committed an “act of terror” against Azerbaijan. He went on to list favorable acts Azerbaijan had recently performed for Tehran, including Aliyev being the only head of state to visit the country’s Iranian Embassy to pay his respects to former Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who was killed at the beginning of the war.
“In return for all this, to strike Nakhchivan in an ugly, cowardly, and shameless manner? This stain will never be erased from their ugly face,” Aliyev said, previously saying Iranians were “acting like vile and ungrateful people.”
Though few doubted the drones were Iranian, Iran’s military blamed Israel, claiming it carried out a false flag attack to stir division between the countries. Azerbaijan put its military on high alert, but diplomatic exchanges helped calm the situation.
Some military analysts had long speculated Israel was using Azerbaijan to launch attacks against Iran, as far back as 2024. The two established relations shortly after Azerbaijani independence from the Soviet Union, and have each found the relationship indispensable. Azerbaijan supplies much of Israel’s oil and serves as a back door entrance to the Muslim world, while Israel supplies Azerbaijan with much of its cutting-edge technology.
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Vice President JD Vance visited Azerbaijan a few weeks before the beginning of Operation Epic Fury, shoring up the newfound warm U.S.-Azerbaijan relationship. The visit probably heightened Guard suspicions that the country’s territory was being used to strike Iran.
U.S.-Azerbaijani relations have reached an all-time high in recent months, with Washington helping to broker a preliminary peace deal between Azerbaijan and Armenia on terms heavily favorable to the former.
