Iranian Border Guards' Commander Ahmed Ali Goudarzi criticized the Azeri government in an interview with a local media outlet, Thursday.
Follow Israel Hayom on Facebook and Twitter
"Our country's borders are particularly secure in the north and northwest, and there is no cause for concern," Goudarzi said. "We have warned our neighbors to the north against the presence of hostile entities on our northern borders."
"Israel is active in countries on our northwestern borders but, unfortunately, it is now more active in Azerbaijan."
The commander said the Israeli intelligence agents "are completely under observation. They are completely under the intelligence bombardment of the Islamic Republic."
Iran has "full control" over their activities," Goudarzi said.
The reference to "countries on our northwestern borders" could point not only to Israeli intelligence ties to Azerbaijan but Turkey as well.
In December, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan was quoted as saying: "Our intelligence ties with Israel are ongoing. We have difficulties in managing ties with people in senior leadership roles. The ties would be very different were it not for trouble with those at the top," he said.
Growing tensions in the South Caucusus in recent weeks have had an impact on Iran-Turkey ties. Among other things, a border crossing was closed to Iranian trucks as Tehran accused Ankara of stationing troops in the Azeri city of Horadiz, near the countries' shared border.
Subscribe to Israel Hayom's daily newsletter and never miss our top stories!
