Authorities in Azerbaijan said on Tuesday they had arrested three individuals planning an attack on a foreign embassy in the capital, Baku, at the instructions of Islamic State Khorasan (ISIS-K), the Afghan offshoot of Islamic State.
A source later told The Jerusalem Post that the target was the Israeli embassy.
In a statement, the State Security Service said the three men, whom it named, had conspired with members of ISIS-K, obtained weapons, and planned to attack a foreign embassy before they were apprehended by security forces.
The initial statement did not name the Israeli embassy as the target. One of the men was born in 2000, and the other two in 2005.
Islamic State-Khorasan, or ISIS-K, claimed responsibility for the 2024 Crocus City Hall attack in Moscow, which left at least 145 people dead.
There have been a number of Islamic State-linked plots foiled in the majority-Muslim regions of Russia, where the group is listed as a banned terrorist organization, and in Central Asia.
Azerbaijan’s State Security Service (DTX) identified the detainees as Guliyev Ilgar Ilham oglu (born 2000), known as “Abu Zar al-Muhajir,” Piriyev Amin Elshad oglu (born 2005), known by the religious alias “Abdurashid,” and Alizade Elvin Sanan oglu (born 2005), alias “Abdurrahman al-Azari.”
During a raid on their operational hideout, security forces seized an arsenal of weapons, ammunition, and ready-to-use explosive materials.
The announcement comes just 24 hours after Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar concluded a diplomatic visit to Baku. During the visit, Sa’ar met with President Ilham Aliyev to reinforce the strategic and energy ties between the two nations. Security sources suggest the timing of the plot was likely intended to strike at the heart of the burgeoning Jerusalem-Baku alliance.
The discovery of the cell also provides a clearer picture of the security concerns that led to the relocation of the European Rabbis Conference. Originally scheduled to be held in Baku last November, the event was moved to Jerusalem following specific warnings and recommendations from Israeli intelligence agencies. While the DTX maintained at the time that it was capable of securing the summit, the threat level from extremist networks was deemed too high.
Azerbaijan, a key strategic ally of Israel, has faced persistent challenges from both Sunni and Shi'ite extremist groups. In addition to the ISIS threat, the DTX has been actively combatting Iranian-backed elements, most notably the Husseiniyyun, a proxy group often referred to as the "Hezbollah of the Caucasus."
The Husseiniyyun, which adopts the same iconography as other Iranian proxies, aims to undermine Baku's secular government and its cooperation with Israel. Security officials noted that the DTX, often likened to Israel's Shin Bet for its operational efficiency, continues to work in close coordination with Jerusalem to monitor these threats and protect Jewish and Israeli institutions in the region.
Azerbaijan says it stopped ISIS-K embassy attack plot
Azerbaijan, a South Caucasus country of some 10 million people bordering Russia and Iran, is a secular country with a predominantly Muslim population, the majority of whom are Shiites.
In its statement, Azerbaijani authorities said the suspects had been arrested on charges of "preparation for terrorism" on the basis of religious hostility. They said the investigation was ongoing.
In a separate case, an Azerbaijani court sentenced a man affiliated with ISIS-K to 13 years in prison on terrorism charges last October after finding him guilty of plotting an attack on a synagogue in Baku with a Molotov cocktail in December 2024.