An armed attack took place on the embassy of Azerbaijan in Tehran, the capital city of Iran on early Friday, where police said the attacker was detained immediately.
The assailant was identified as Yasin Huseynzade, an Iranian citizen who stormed the embassy and went on a shooting spree and killed the head of the security service of the Azerbaijani embassy, Orkhan Asgarov. Two embassy security officers were also wounded and the incident is currently being investigated.
Iranian Foreign Ministry Spokesman Nasser Kana’ani has offered condolences to Azerbaijan over the death of a person and stressed that Iranian authorities have launched a serious probe into the matter.
Tehran police said that the attacker came to the embassy with two children and that the killer was looking for his wife. It has been reported that the attacker’s wife was inside the embassy, but it is not clear if he wanted to shoot her.
However, some people say that Iranian police are hiding the truth and making a false perception of the attack.
The real situation was that if the embassy guards had not stopped the attack, all embassy employees were planned to be killed, Trend reported. Iranian police in surrounding areas have not come to the fore to prevent the terrorist attack.
In the footage, the attacker was seen alone and there were no children with him. The video footage from the surveillance camera at the Azerbaijan embassy also proves this statement.
Reportedly, the attacker was associated with the Iranian special services and now Iran is trying to divert attention from the attack as a “terrorist act” and creating false opinion in the local and international arena. The attacker was not with children, he was alone when entered inside the building.
Personal and family problems
The Iranian capital police chief, Brigadier General Rahimi said they have taken immediate action following the incident and arrested the man in a nutshell. “This person entered the Azerbaijan embassy with a firearm (AK-47 rifle). Through the swift police action, the attacker was immediately arrested and was put under investigation,” Rahimi added.
According to Rahimi, the attacker stormed into the embassy with his two young children and described the motive behind the incident as “personal and family problems.”
The Tehran criminal court prosecutor said that in the preliminary investigation, the defendant claimed that in April last year; his wife went to the Azerbaijan embassy in Tehran and did not return home, local news agency Meher reported.
The judicial official added that the man had thought his wife was hiding inside the embassy compound after he did not receive any response from the embassy despite repeatedly visiting there.
“This morning I decided to go to the embassy with the Kalashnikov rifle that I had already prepared,” the prosecutor quoted the attacker as saying.
Iranian Foreign Ministry Spokesman Kana’ani said that Iranian security forces took swift action to arrest the attacker and investigation is underway to get a clear picture of the event.
Kana’ani said that at the special order of the country’s political and security authorities, the issue is under investigation with high priority and sensitivity in order to determine the dimensions of this action and the attacker’s motive.
Azerbaijan condemns the attack
Azerbaijan said that attempts to threaten Azerbaijan’s diplomatic mission in Iran have been also made before, calling on the Iranian side to beef up security situation
“The issues of preventing such cases in Iran, taking measures to ensure the security of our diplomatic missions were constantly raised. Unfortunately, the latest bloody terrorist attack demonstrates the serious consequences of not paying due attention to our urgent calls in this direction. We believe that the recent anti-Azerbaijani campaign in Iran prompted such attacks on our diplomatic mission,” Trend quoted the statement.
The ministry confirmed the head of the embassy’s security team was killed while two other members of the team were injured in the assault.
Azerbaijani Foreign Minister, Jeyhun Bayramov called on Iran authorities to punish the man responsible for the embassy attack as soon as possible.
“We strongly condemn the treacherous terrorist attack against the Embassy of Azerbaijan in Iran. We offer our condolences to the family and loved ones of our deceased officer. The perpetrators of the terrorist attack and its customers should be punished as soon as possible,” he wrote on his twitter.
Strongly condemned the attack
Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu on Friday condemned a “treacherous attack” on Azerbaijan’s Embassy in Tehran.
“I condemn the treacherous attack on the Azerbaijan Embassy in Tehran. Azerbaijan is never alone,” Cavusoglu said on twitter, tagging his Azerbaijani counterpart Jeyhun Bayramov.
In a separate statement, the Turkish Foreign Ministry also strongly condemned the attack, and wished Allah’s mercy upon the Embassy personnel who lost his life and a speedy recovery to the injured.
Turkish Vice President Fuat Oktay also condemned the “treacherous attack” and said “we are always one and together with Azerbaijan.”
Georgia also condemned the attack on the Embassy of Azerbaijan in Iran.
“Any act of violence against any diplomatic mission is completely unacceptable. We convey our condolences to the family of the victim of the tragedy”, Georgina Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a tweet.
Proper investigation demanded
French Ambassador to Azerbaijan Anne Boillon in a tweet posted expressed sadness on the attack on the Azerbaijani embassy in Iran.
“Deeply saddened by the attack. On behalf of the French Embassy I extend my sincere condolences to the Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry, colleagues, and to the family of Orkhan Asgarov,” she said.
Ambassador of Ukraine to Azerbaijan Vladislav Kanevsky also reacted to the attack and asked for a proper investigation into the incident. “The perpetrators must be held accountable. Impunity opens the way to new crimes,” the ambassador said.
Relations between the two countries, Iran and Azerbaijan have been tense in the past couple of years. The main source of contention is the military drills held by each side near the Iranian-Azerbaijani border. Iran is also very watchful and not happy over Azerbaijan’s decision to open an embassy in Israel, Iran’s arch-enemy.
