Azerbaijan thwarts alleged IRGC-linked plot targeting Israeli embassy, BTC pipeline

way2barak, March 7: Azerbaijan’s State Security Service said on Friday it had disrupted a series of planned terrorist attacks and intelligence operations allegedly orchestrated by Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC).

The plot targeted several locations and individuals in Azerbaijan, including the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan (BTC) oil pipeline, a major energy corridor capable of carrying more than 1 million barrels of oil per day, as well as the Israeli Embassy in Baku, a leader of the Mountain Jewish community and an Ashkenazi synagogue.

Investigators said explosives were smuggled into Azerbaijan as part of the alleged plan, with security officers discovering C-4 in a container near the Shikhov settlement in Baku’s Sabayil district and identifying two additional remote-controlled devices hidden at separate locations, including one in the Garadagh district.

Security officials also said the suspected network had planned an assassination targeting a public figure in Azerbaijan. Local collaborators were allegedly instructed to monitor the individual’s workplace, obtain firearms and secure a vehicle that could be used during the attack.

Authorities said preventive operations carried out by the State Security Service stopped the alleged attacks before they could be carried out.

Several Azerbaijani citizens were convicted on related charges and sentenced to six years and six months in prison following the investigation.

Investigators also said a foreign intelligence officer was involved in organizing the alleged plot, and international arrest warrants have been issued for several foreign nationals suspected of taking part.