ISTANBUL

Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev on Thursday accused Iran of committing a "terrorist act" following a drone strike in the country’s autonomous Nakhchivan exclave, which injured four people.

"The state of Azerbaijan strongly condemns this heinous terrorist act. Those responsible must be brought to justice without delay," Aliyev was quoted as saying in a statement by the presidency following a Security Council meeting.

Baku must be given an explanation by Iranian officials regarding the incident, an apology must be made, and those who committed the act must be held criminally liable, Aliyev stressed.

He argued that the incident is not the first such "terrorist act" against Baku, recalling an attack on its embassy in Tehran in January 2023, which, he claimed, was "ordered at the highest levels of Iran’s state institutions."

Aliyev said Baku's response to the incident at the time was strong, adding: "This time, our response will be the same. We will not tolerate this unprovoked act of terror and aggression against Azerbaijan."

He noted that the country’s armed forces were ordered to "prepare and implement appropriate retaliatory measures," and that Azerbaijan told the Iranian side "on numerous occasions" that it never allowed and will continue not to allow its territory to be used against any neighboring state.

The Azerbaijani president said his country has not and will not participate in operations against Iran. "This is our principled position. We have no interest and no policy to conduct operations against neighboring countries. We protect - and have always protected - our territorial integrity."

"All necessary measures will be taken through diplomatic channels. Our Armed Forces - the Ministry of Defense, the State Border Service, and all Special Forces units - have been placed at the highest level of combat readiness and are prepared to carry out any required operations," he added.

Earlier on Thursday, the Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry said its exclave was hit by drones launched from Iran, with one drone striking the terminal building of Nakhchivan International Airport, while another fell near a school building in the village of Shakarabad.

“We strongly condemn these drone attacks launched from the territory of the Islamic Republic of Iran, which resulted in damage to the airport building and injuries to two civilians,” the ministry said in a statement.

The Health Ministry later announced four people were injured, while the Defense Ministry claimed four drones were launched in the attack.

Abbas Araghchi, the foreign minister of Iran, which is facing US-Israeli attacks since the weekend and has retaliated against Israel and US assets in different countries, denied any projectiles were launched towards the country during a phone call with his Azerbaijani counterpart Jeyhun Bayramov, according to a statement.

Araghchi also told Bayramov that armed forces were conducting an investigation into the issue.