Azerbaijan thwarts Iranian terror plots targeting Jews and Israeli embassy

Authorities in Azerbaijan revealed on Friday that they had thwarted Iranian terrorist attacks targeting local Jewish community leaders, a synagogue, and the Israeli embassy in the capital, Baku.

The Iranian-linked plot reportedly also intended to strike a local pipeline used for oil exports to Israel. Local authorities said that at least seven Azeri nationals were arrested during the counterterrorism operation.

Azerbaijan’s security service announced that it had “prevented terrorist acts and intelligence operations in Azerbaijan organized by Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC).”

The Jewish state has recently warned of “concrete threats” of Iranian attacks on Jews and Israeli institutions worldwide following the joint U.S. and Israeli military strike on Iran, which began on Feb. 28 with the elimination of Iran’s Supreme Leader, Ali Khamenei, and 40 top Iranian military and political officials. 

Between 7,000 and 10,000 Jews live in Azerbaijan, a Muslim-majority country known for its tolerance towards religious and ethnic minorities. 

At least four individuals were injured earlier this week in an Iranian drone attack in Azerbaijan, which shares a border with the Islamic Republic of Iran. An Iranian drone exploded adjacent to a local school, whereas another drone hit an airport in Azerbaijan. 

The Azeri President, Ilham Aliyev, condemned the Iranian aggression and warned that Azerbaijan reserved the right to respond. 

"We will not tolerate this unprovoked act of terror and aggression against Azerbaijan. Our Armed Forces have been instructed to prepare and implement appropriate retaliatory measures," Aliyev told the Azeri Security Council.

In addition to the attack on Azerbaijan, the ayatollah regime has in recent days also targeted Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Jordan, Turkey and Cyprus. 

Azerbaijan announced on Friday that it intends to withdraw its diplomatic staff from its institutions in Iran. 

“The process applies to both the embassy in Tehran and the consulate in Tabriz,” Azeri Foreign Minister Jeyhun Bayramov stated.

Azerbaijan and Israel have developed close diplomatic, commercial, and security relations, a reality that the ayatollah regime in Tehran has tried to undermine. The ayatollah regime’s attempts to intimidate Azerbaijan into dropping its ties with Israel have had the opposite effect. 

In October 2025, Azerbaijan cancelled a conference for European Rabbis in Baku due to the threat of Iranian terrorist attacks. The conference was cancelled after the Israeli intelligence agency Mossad had convinced Azerbaijan’s security service that the Iranian terrorist threat was real and imminent. 

“The Conference of European Rabbis regrets to announce that its convention in Baku, scheduled for next week, has been postponed due to circumstances beyond our control,” the Conference of European Rabbis stated at the time.

It also praised the Azeri government for its support and protection: “We wish to thank the government of Azerbaijan for its continued support and apologize for any inconvenience caused.”

Following the 12-day-war in June 2025 between Israel and Iran, the ayatollah regime accused Azerbaijan of allowing the Israeli Air Force to use its airspace for the aerial campaigns against Iran. The Azeri government has denied the accusation, and the latest Iranian drone attack has only increased tensions between Tehran and Baku.