Azerbaijan threatens response after Iranian drones hit airport and near school
BAKU, Azerbaijan (AP) — Azerbaijan warned Thursday that it could retaliate against Tehran after Iran fired two drones at its northern neighbor, wounding two people.
Azerbaijan summoned Iran’s envoy after attacks hit an airport and near a school.
Iran has not admitted it targeted Azerbaijan, but its retaliatory attacks have spread erratically to countries in the region and beyond as part of an intensive joint US-Israeli air campaign that began over the weekend.
The midday attacks involved at least two drones that crossed from Iran into the Azerbaijani exclave of Nakhichevan, which borders Iran and is separated from mainland Azerbaijan by Armenia, a Foreign Ministry statement said.
“One drone fell on the terminal building of Nakhchivan airport, while another drone crashed near a school building in the village of Shekerabad,” the ministry said, damaging the airport and injuring two civilians.
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A source close to the Azerbaijani government told Reuters that a fire broke out as a result of the incident.
Video footage shared by the source showed black smoke rising near the airport and the skylight in the terminal building being damaged.
Iran carried out a drone attack on Nakhchivan International Airport in Azerbaijan, with two loitering Arash-2 munitions hitting various locations at the airport. pic.twitter.com/YwdYB8LjgX
— OSINTWarfare (@OSINTWarfare) March 5, 2026
The ministry said it summoned Iran’s envoy in Baku to express “strong protest” against the attack, which “contradicts the norms and principles of international law and contributes to increasing tensions in the region.”
“Azerbaijan reserves the right to take appropriate retaliatory measures,” it added.
“We demand that the Islamic Republic of Iran clarify the matter as soon as possible, make a statement and take the necessary urgent measures to prevent such incidents from recurring in the future,” the ministry said.
After a ballistic missile was fired from Iran at Turkey, a drone attacked Nakhichevan International Airport in Azerbaijan. Azerbaijani news agency APA published footage of the unmanned aerial vehicle crashing near the facility, indicating that the UAV approached from… pic.twitter.com/03jKEkkHdx
– Aleksandar Djokic (@polidemitolog) March 5, 2026
Iran has long expressed concern that Israel – a close ally of Azerbaijan and a major arms supplier – could use Azerbaijani territory for attacks.
Last June, Azerbaijan assured Iran that it would not allow its territory to be used to attack Tehran after Israel launched a large-scale attack on Iranian targets and said Iran was taking steps to weaponize its nuclear research program.
Israel and the United States say their current campaign aims to ensure that Iran can never produce a nuclear weapon and also to destroy Iran’s long-range missile program. Israel has also pushed the Iranians to topple the country’s regime, a development the US has also indicated it would like to see.
Iran responded to the campaign by firing ballistic missiles and drones at Israel and Middle Eastern countries where US bases are located. Two drones also targeted a British base in Cyprus, and on Wednesday Turkey said an Iranian missile was intercepted as it entered its airspace.
In February 2012, Azerbaijan agreed to a $1.4 billion deal for Israeli drones and military technology. Later that year, Iran complained that Israeli-built drones were patrolling the border with Azerbaijan.
Tehran has always been wary of separatist sentiment among its ethnic Azerbaijani minority, which makes up about 10 million of Iran’s 83 million citizens.
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