Gunman storms Azerbaijani embassy in Tehran, killing one

A gunman opened fire at the Azerbaijani Embassy in the Iranian capital Tehran, killing a security guard and injuring two people, Tehran police said Friday. According to police, the attacker entered the embassy accompanied by his two minor children

"The attacker broke through the guard post and killed the security chief with a Kalashnikov assault rifle," a statement from Azerbaijan's Foreign Ministry said.

Video footage from a security camera at the embassy showed the perpetrator entering the building and opening fire on security personnel.

The video footage of a terrorist attack on the #AZE Embassy in #Tehran is available now. Despite #IRN claims that the perpetrator entered the building with 2 kids, the video shows a man armed with an AK rifle without any kids around. Deliberate attack. pic.twitter.com/zaDmRoEkbh

— Fuad Shahbaz (@fuadshahbazov) January 27, 2023

Police in Tehran said they had arrested the gunman and were investigating the motive for the attack.

The shooter had entered the embassy with his two minor children, police said.

In the initial investigation, the attacker stated that his motivation for the attack was personal and family problems.

The first armed attack on an Azerbaijani diplomatic mission in Iran comes amid growing tensions between the two majority-Shiite neighbors over a range of regional issues, including Azerbaijan's relations with Israel and its conflict with Armenia over the self-governing Armenian enclave Nagorno-Karabakh.

Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu condemned the "treacherous attack" on Twitter, tagging his Azerbaijani counterpart Jeyhun Bayramov.

"Azerbaijan is never alone," he added.