Drug smuggling foiled, one violator killed on Azerbaijan-Iran border

By Azernews

By Vafa Ismayilova

The State Border Service has reported a fatal shoot-out on the border with Iran in an operation to thwart drug smuggling into Azerbaijan.

In a report posted on its website on July 6, the State Border Service said that at 23:45 on July 5, five unidentified persons violated Azerbaijan's state border with Iran near Jalilabad region's Sarkhanli village.

The border violators put up armed resistance and fired on the border guards from the Goytepe border guard service of the State Border Service's border troops.

During the persecution of the border violators, Azerbaijani citizen Mazahir Gurbanov, 29, who was wanted by the law-enforcement agencies, received a gunshot wound. He later died on the way to the hospital. Other border violators fled to Iran, taking advantage of the densely forested area and dark weather.

The border guards seized 6.8 kg of drug-like substances (4 kg - heroin, 1,3 kg - opium, 325 grams - methamphetamine, 1000 methadone-40 pills, 260 pregabalin) in one bag and medicines (10 ampoules - Revit 8, 30 capsules - Wellman, 10 ampoules - Testosterone) from the scene of the incident.

The report added that Iran was immediately informed of the incident after which the two countries' border officials met.

Necessary operational and investigative measures are being taken by the State Border Service and the Prosecutor-General's Office over the case, the State Border Service reported. 

It should be noted that two Azerbaijani border guards were killed in a shoot-out on the country's state border with Iran in mid-May.

At about 16:00 on May 15, three unknown persons violated Azerbaijan's state border in the Goytepe border guard service zone of the State Border Service's border troops near Yardimli region's Gendere village. 

After liberating its lands from Armenia's occupation in a 44-day war with Armenia in 2020, Azerbaijan restored control over the 132-km section of the Azerbaijan-Iran border.