In a shocking visuals surfaced from Iran's Tehran, a gunman carrying a machine gun opened fire at an employee of the security service of Azerbaijan's embassy. Two others were also reported injured in the incident.
Head of the embassy's security service Orkhan Askerov was killed in the attack.
Video purportedly from the scene of the attack showed a police post just near the embassy, with one man apparently wounded in an SUV parked outside.
Prevailing tensions between Iran and Azerbaijan
Tehran Police shief Hussain Rahimi said the attacker entered the Embassy with his two children. Preliminary reports say that the motive for the attack was "personal and family problems".
However, it should be noted that Azerbaijan borders Iran to its northwest and there have been tensions between the two countries as Azerbaijan and Armenia have fought over the Nagorno-Karabakh region.
Iran in October launched a military exercise near the Azerbaijan border, flexing its martial might amid the nationwide protests rocking the Islamic Republic. Azerbaijan also maintains close ties to Israel, which Tehran views as one of its top regional enemies.
The Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry said in a statement that the deceased was the head of the embassy's security service Orkhan Askerov.
Nigar Arpadarai who is Member of Parliament of the Republic of Azerbaijan also informed about the same.
After the attack, Iranian authorities confirmed that the perpetrator was arrested but his name was not made public.
According to the IRNA news agency, the police are investigating the case.
(With inputs from agencies)
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