Pezeshkian: Nakhchivan aerial bombardment not linked to Iran, investigation underway

Iran’s President Masoud Pezeshkian (R) and Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian has reiterated that the recent aerial bombardment in Nakhchivan is not linked to Iran.

In a telephone conversation with his Azerbaijani counterpart, Ilham Aliyev, on Sunday, Pezeshkian pledged that authorities will conduct a thorough investigation into the incident.

Aliyev also emphasized the importance of investigating the incident in Nakhchivan. Media outlets said on Thursday that two drones had struck the Nakhchivan region of Azerbaijan.

Kazem Gharibabadi, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Legal Affairs, rejected the reports concerning an Iranian drone strike on the international airport of Nakhchivan.

He emphasized Iran’s commitment not to target neighboring countries and called for a thorough investigation into the incident.

Also, in his conversation with the Azerbaijani president, Pezeshkian expressed his gratitude to Aliyev for his visit to the Iranian embassy to offer condolences regarding the martyrdom of the Leader of the Islamic Revolution, Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei, and numerous civilians, as well as for his intention to provide humanitarian aid to Iran.

Aliyev, for his part, reiterated his condolences concerning the martyrdom of many non-combatants in recent events within Iran.

The comments come as Iran continues to launch attacks on US military bases and assets in regional countries as part of its retaliation for ongoing US and Israeli attacks on its territory.

The retaliatory attacks started on February 28, just hours after the US and Israel launched an aerial aggression on Iran by assassinating the Leader of the Islamic Revolution, Ayatollah Khamenei, and several senior military commanders.

Iranian reprisal attacks have successfully targeted many locations in the Israeli-occupied territories as well as US military bases in several countries neighboring Iran.

Those countries have criticized the attacks and have been calling on Iran to stop them.

However, authorities in Tehran have indicated that the attacks will only stop when those countries stop allowing the US and Israel to use their territory and airspace to carry out attacks on Iran.