CNN: Israel Secretly Deployed Elite Military and Intelligence Units in Azerbaijan During War With Iran
Israel secretly deployed elite military and intelligence personnel to Azerbaijan during its war with Iran, operating as part of a network of covert sites across the Middle East that supported operations against Tehran, according to a CNN report.
Two sources told CNN that Israeli forces operated from several locations in southern Azerbaijan near Iran’s northern border. At their closest point, the sites were reportedly about 96 kilometers (60 miles) from the Iranian city of Tabriz, which was targeted by Israeli strikes during the conflict.
The report states that special operations forces conducted intelligence-gathering missions and drone operations from the area, providing Israel with a valuable vantage point over northern Iran.
The forward positions allegedly extended Israel’s operational reach by hundreds of kilometers deep into Iranian territory and helped support repeated waves of strikes against targets across the country.
According to the sources, the Azerbaijan operation involved several dozen personnel, including members of Israel’s special operations forces, personnel from Unit 669 operating helicopters, and Mossad operatives.
A spokesperson for Azerbaijan’s embassy in Washington denied the claims, telling CNN: “We strongly reject baseless allegations regarding the alleged use of Azerbaijan’s territory for operations against third countries.”
One source also claimed that Somaliland provided Israel with an additional military foothold in the Horn of Africa, potentially offering Israeli aircraft a staging point for long-range flights toward Iran.
Israel reportedly became the first country to formally recognize Somaliland in December, while the United Arab Emirates maintains significant commercial and military activity in the port city of Berbera.
The secret deployment in Azerbaijan was reportedly one of several forward positions Israel maintained across the region. Sources told CNN that similar covert sites existed in Azerbaijan, Iraq, the United Arab Emirates, and Somaliland.
Initially envisioned as emergency rescue contingencies, the positions allegedly evolved into military and intelligence outposts that expanded Israel’s regional operational capabilities.
