Azerbaijan's State Security Service announced on Friday that it had prevented a series of terrorist, sabotage, and intelligence-gathering operations planned by Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC).
According to state television AzTV, the planned attacks targeted critical infrastructure and prominent individuals in Azerbaijan.
Among the intended targets were the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan oil pipeline, the Israeli Embassy in Baku, a leader of the Mountain Jewish community, and an Ashkenazi synagogue.
The investigation found that Iranian and Azerbaijani nationals conspired to smuggle explosives into the country. Authorities discovered a container containing 7.73 kilograms of C-4 explosives.
Investigators also determined that two additional remote-controlled C-4 explosive devices had been smuggled into Azerbaijan and hidden in various locations. Another device weighing 1.28 kilograms, with a blast radius of 250 to 300 meters, was discovered in the Garadagh district.
The IRGC had also planned the assassination of a public figure in Azerbaijan, according to the reports. Local collaborators were instructed to conduct surveillance of the target’s workplace, obtain firearms, and secure a vehicle.
The report further said that, during the investigation, authorities determined that a Revolutionary Guards intelligence officer, identified as Colonel Ali Asgar Bordbar Sheramini, was involved in organizing the terrorist plots.
Reports of the uncovered terror plots come a day after two drones launched from Iranian territory struck an airport in Azerbaijan, injuring two people and causing damage to infrastructure at the airport.
This marked the first direct Iranian attack on its northern neighbor since the launch of Operation “Roaring Lion" last Saturday.
In response, Baku summoned Iran’s ambassador for a formal reprimand, stressing that Azerbaijan reserves the right to respond.
(Arutz Sheva-Israel National News' North American desk is keeping you updated until the start of Shabbat in New York. The time posted automatically on all Israel National News articles, however, is Israeli time.)