522 non-governmental organizations operating in Azerbaijan issued a statement regarding the armed attack on the Azerbaijani embassy in Iran.

APA reports that the statement reads:

"As representatives of Non-Governmental Organizations operating in Azerbaijan, we strongly condemn the armed attack on the Embassy of the Republic of Azerbaijan in the Islamic Republic of Iran on January 27, 2023 and express our strong protest.

This attack is a terrorist act directed directly against the state of Azerbaijan and is a violation of international law.

Documents such as the 1961 Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations, the 1963 Vienna Convention on Consular Relations, and the 1946 Convention on the Privileges and Immunities of the United Nations apply to a representative of a foreign state enjoying international protection, his service or residence, or considers the attack on vehicles inadmissible.

Article 22 of the 1961 Vienna Convention states that

"The receiving state must take all appropriate measures to protect the buildings of diplomatic missions from any interference and damage, and to prevent any violation of the comfort of the mission."

This terrorist act showed that Iran did not fulfill its obligations under the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations to ensure the security of the embassy and its employees.

Especially after the 2020 Patriotic War, the anti-Azerbaijani campaign in Iran, including in the Iranian media and various institutions, and negative attitudes towards Azerbaijan have created a kind of conditions for the commission of this terrorist act.

There have been various threats against Azerbaijan's diplomatic corps in Iran before, and appeals have been made to Iran about this.

Despite this, the Iranian state did not take any action to prevent these threats, and as a result, this treacherous terrorist act was committed.

It seems that the person who committed the treacherous terrorist attack freely arrived at the Embassy of Azerbaijan and attacked the embassy with a Kalashnikov, and no steps were taken by Iran to prevent this incident.

As a result of the incident, the death of an employee of the Azerbaijani embassy and the injury of other employees deeply shocked the entire Azerbaijani people.

We hope, as well as demand, that those who ordered and committed this incident will be punished in the most severe way and that such cases will not happen again.

As representatives of the Civil Society of Azerbaijan, we believe that Iran as a state should accept responsibility for the attack on the Azerbaijani embassy, ​​understand the concerns of the Azerbaijani people, and seriously investigate the incident.

At the same time, we strongly demand from the Islamic Republic of Iran to find and punish the perpetrators, orderers, and those responsible for the incident.

At the same time, Azerbaijan, as non-governmental organizations, appeals to all international organizations in order to ensure that the culprits receive a decent punishment, and we demand an assessment of this terrorist incident.