Israel Deployed Elite Units to Azerbaijan, cooperated with regional partners against Iran during conflict

Israel secretly deployed several dozen elite military and intelligence personnel to southern Azerbaijan during its war with Iran, CNN reported. The units operated from multiple locations adjacent to Iran’s northern border, with the closest sites roughly 60 miles from the city of Tabriz, which Israel struck during the conflict.

Special commando units conducted intelligence-gathering missions and drone operations from the Azerbaijani positions, the same reporting said.

The deployment began as a potential rescue force but expanded into a broader military and intelligence platform. Israel also maintained covert sites in Iraq, the United Arab Emirates, and Somaliland during the same period. Two secret facilities in Iraq supported logistics and search-and-rescue operations.

Israel deployed an Iron Dome battery and operating personnel to the UAE. Somaliland provided a forward stop for long-range Israeli aircraft. The Azerbaijan operation included members of Israel’s special operations forces, its elite heliborne combat and rescue unit, and Mossad personnel.

In mid-January, as Iran suppressed protests, Israeli forces installed listening devices and intelligence equipment along the Azerbaijan-Iran border using stealth jets and special forces. President Donald Trump had called off planned strikes at that time after Iran agreed to halt the killing of demonstrators.

Less than two weeks after the January operation, Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar visited Baku and met with Azerbaijani officials.

In May 2025, Azerbaijan hosted secret direct talks between Israel and Syria. On March 4, Rahman Moghaddam, head of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps intelligence division, was killed. Israel stated he had planned an assassination attempt against Trump in 2024.

The following day, drones struck an airport in Azerbaijan’s Nakhchivan enclave, damaging a terminal and wounding several people. ” Iran denied involvement. On March 6, Azerbaijan’s State Security Service announced it had disrupted an IRGC plot targeting critical infrastructure and Israeli and Jewish sites.

Israel later confirmed the operation was conducted jointly with the Mossad, Israeli military, and Shin Bet. Iraq’s military stated there were no unauthorized bases or forces in the country as of early March. ” Baku supplies Israel with a large share of its oil, and Israel sells Azerbaijan advanced weaponry, including systems used in earlier Nagorno-Karabakh conflicts.

Azerbaijan was the first foreign buyer of Israel’s Iron Dome system in 2016. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, the head of the Mossad, and Israel’s military chief visited the UAE during the war.