Iran’s Deputy Foreign Minister Kazem Gharibabadi, in an exclusive interview with AnewZ on Thursday, said the Islamic Republic did not target Azerbaijan amid reports of drone strikes on Nakhchivan International Airport on Thursday (5 March).
“We are not targeting our neighbouring countries,” Gharibabadi said.
He added that Iran’s policy is to strike only military bases of its adversaries, including the United States and the “Zionist regimes,” which he claims are active in the region and used to attack Iranian civilians.
“Because we have announced it from the beginning that, if there are any military bases in the region and they are used to attack Iran, we will target them. So that was the policy that we have,” Gharibabadi said.
Two civilians were injured after drones launched from Iranian territory struck Azerbaijan’s Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic, Azerbaijan’s Foreign Ministry said in a statement.
According to the Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry, the incidents occurred at around midday when drones entered the Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic from Iranian territory. One drone struck the terminal building of Nakhchivan International Airport, while another landed near a school in the village of Shakarabad.
Nakhchivan International Airport lies roughly 10 km (6 miles) from the Iranian border. A source close to the Azerbaijani government told Reuters that missiles and drones had been observed flying from the direction of Iran before falling within the airport grounds.
Increasing tension
“We strongly condemn these drone attacks carried out from the territory of the Islamic Republic of Iran,” the ministry said, adding that the incident “contradicts the norms and principles of international law and serves to increase tension in the region”.
Azerbaijan demanded that Iran clarify the incident and “take urgent and necessary measures to prevent such cases from recurring”, warning that it “reserves the right to take appropriate retaliatory measures”.
The Iranian ambassador to Azerbaijan, Mujtaba Darmichilu, was summoned to the Foreign Ministry, where a formal note of protest was presented.
Meanwhile, the Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic’s Ministry of Education said teachers and students from two schools near the airport were evacuated.
“The evacuation was carried out to ensure the safety of the teaching staff and students,” the ministry said.
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