Azerbaijan vows to respond after Iranian drones injure 4

Azerbaijan warned on Thursday that it was preparing unspecified response measures after a pair of Iranian drones flew across its border and injured four people in the Nakhchivan exclave, raising concern about further spillover of the ‌conflict in the Middle East.

“These attacks will not remain unanswered,” the Azerbaijani Defence Ministry said in a statement.

It added that it was investigating the types of drones used in the attack, and “preparing the necessary response measures to protect the territorial integrity and sovereignty of the country and to ensure the safety of civilians and civilian infrastructure”.

Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Kazem Gharibabadi ‌denied Tehran had targeted Nakhchivan.

“We do not attack our neighbouring countries,” he told Azerbaijani outlet AnewZ.

The foreign ministry earlier demanded that Iran “clarify the matter ‌in the shortest possible time, provide an explanation and take the necessary ⁠urgent measures to ⁠prevent such incidents from recurring in the future”, adding that the incident “contributes to increased tensions in the ‌region”.