In the aftermath of the recent 12-day war between Israel and Iran, Tehran has accused neighboring Azerbaijan of allowing Israeli drones to use its territory and airspace to launch attacks on Iran during the conflict.
On Thursday, Iranian President Massoud Pezeshkian raised the issue directly with Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev during a phone call, expressing concerns over what Tehran described as the use of Israeli micro-drones launched from Azerbaijani territory.
The accusations intensified on Friday when Iran’s Ambassador to Armenia, Mehdi Sobhani, claimed that Iranian intelligence had confirmed several drones had entered Iranian airspace from Azerbaijan. Sobhani described the situation as a “final warning” to Baku, signaling the seriousness with which Iran views the matter.
In response, the Azerbaijani government released an official readout of the presidential phone call, denying the allegations. Baku insisted that no aircraft or drones had used its airspace to carry out attacks during the Iran-Israel conflict.
Speculation over Azerbaijan’s role began almost immediately after hostilities broke out on June 13th. Officials on Iranian state media hinted early in the war that drones were entering the country from “neighboring countries,” though they initially avoided naming Azerbaijan directly.
Videos circulated online during the conflict appeared to show fuel drop tanks—believed to be from Israeli fighter jets—washing ashore on Iran’s Caspian Sea coast, fueling further claims of foreign airspace being used in attacks from the North.
Israel and Azerbaijan maintain close strategic ties. Baku supplies a significant portion of Israel’s oil and gas needs and is a key purchaser of Israeli weapons, including drones and advanced air defense systems. Arms deliveries from Israel to Azerbaijan notably increased before and during the 2020 Nagorno-Karabakh war, and again ahead of Azerbaijan’s 2023 offensive that dismantled the breakaway ethnic Armenian enclave.
The accusations reflect growing regional friction as Iran continues to respond diplomatically and militarily to the fallout of the Israel-Iran war.