DistantNews
Support us
🇰🇷 South Korea /Conflict & Security

Israel operates secret base in Azerbaijan for Iran operations: CNN

From Hankyoreh · () Korean

Translated from Korean, summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.

At a glance

News Named sources Context piece
  • Israel reportedly operates a secret military base in southern Azerbaijan, close to the Iranian border, serving as an operational hub.
  • The base was established in mid-January and used for intelligence gathering and drone operations against Iran, including a strike on an Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps official.
  • Azerbaijan denies its territory is used for operations against third countries, despite close military and commercial ties with Israel.

Israel is reportedly operating a secret military base in southern Azerbaijan, near the Iranian border, which has served as an operational hub during recent Iran-related tensions, according to CNN sources. The base, located approximately 60 miles from the Iranian city of Tabriz, houses dozens of Israeli personnel, including special forces and Mossad agents.

We will continue global maritime enforcement to disrupt illicit networks and interdict vessels providing material support to Iran, wherever they operate.

— US Indo-Pacific CommandStatement on intercepting a sanctioned vessel in the Indian Ocean.

The base was established in mid-January, coinciding with large-scale anti-government protests in Iran and then-U.S. President Donald Trump's rhetoric regarding potential military action. Israel installed eavesdropping equipment and intelligence assets at the base. Although Trump temporarily withdrew plans for an attack, Israel continued to develop the base with stealth aircraft and special forces.

Initially intended for rescuing downed pilots, the base became a key site for monitoring Iranian military movements and launching drone operations into Iran following the outbreak of conflict on February 28. It played a role in the March 4 airstrike that killed Rahman Moghadam, the head of Iran's Revolutionary Guard Corps intelligence. In response, Iran launched drones towards Azerbaijan's Nakhchivan International Airport the following day, an act Azerbaijan's President Ilham Aliyev condemned as "ugly, cowardly, and shameless."

ugly, cowardly, and shameless.

— Ilham AliyevDescribing Iran's drone attack on Azerbaijan.

CNN suggests Azerbaijan may have tacitly approved or collaborated on the base's construction, given its close relationship with Israel, which includes significant oil trade and Israeli arms sales. However, a spokesperson for the Azerbaijani Embassy in Washington D.C. firmly denied claims that Azerbaijani territory is used for operations against third countries. Israel is also reported to operate similar secret bases in Iraq, the United Arab Emirates, and Somaliland, encircling Iran.

Azerbaijan territory has been used for operations against third countries, this unfounded claim is firmly rejected.

— Spokesperson for the Azerbaijani Embassy in Washington D.C.Denying the use of Azerbaijani territory for military operations.
DistantNews Editorial

Originally published by Hankyoreh in Korean. Translated, summarized, and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.

More Stories

From Our Blog