Israel covertly deployed elite commandos and intelligence units inside Azerbaijan during its war with Iran, using secret forward bases just miles from the Iranian border to intensify military and intelligence operations, according to a special CNN investigation.
Citing four reliable sources, the report says Israeli forces operated from hidden locations in southern Azerbaijan some only 60 miles from Iran’s Tabriz, a city that came under direct Israeli airstrikes during the conflict. From these bases, Israeli units launched drones, conducted deep surveillance and gathered intelligence inside Iranian territory, giving Israel unprecedented proximity for precision strikes.
The revelations shed light on how several of Iran’s neighbours quietly allowed Israel to use their territory, drawing them deeper into the regional conflict. Sources told CNN that Israel also established covert military and intelligence sites in Iraq, the United Arab Emirates and Somaliland, initially to rescue downed Israeli pilots but later expanding them into full operational hubs.
These positions effectively allowed Israel to encircle Iran from the south, west and north, enabling long‑range attacks from hundreds of miles away.
At the Azerbaijani base, dozens of Israeli commandos, elite helicopter rescue teams and senior Mossad officials were reportedly stationed. According to the investigation, Israel used this base to carry out the March 4 assassination of Rahman Moghaddam, the intelligence chief of Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps, who had been accused by the United States of plotting to kill former President Donald Trump.
The following day, a drone strike hit Azerbaijan’s Nakhchivan airport an attack President Ilham Aliyev blamed directly on Iran.
Azerbaijan’s embassy in Washington has rejected the CNN report as baseless, insisting it would never allow its territory to be used against a third country. However, the nation has long been viewed as a close strategic partner of Israel, particularly in defence and intelligence cooperation.
The investigation marks the first time such an extensive regional network of Israeli covert bases has been publicly detailed, offering a rare glimpse into the shadow war shaping Middle Eastern geopolitics.
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