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Azerbaijan Opens Embassy in Israel amid Tension with Iran

Bayramov and Cohen during a press conference in Jerusalem on Wednesday. (Azerbaijani Ministry of Foreign Affairs)
Bayramov and Cohen during a press conference in Jerusalem on Wednesday. (Azerbaijani Ministry of Foreign Affairs)
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Azerbaijan Opens Embassy in Israel amid Tension with Iran

Bayramov and Cohen during a press conference in Jerusalem on Wednesday. (Azerbaijani Ministry of Foreign Affairs)
Bayramov and Cohen during a press conference in Jerusalem on Wednesday. (Azerbaijani Ministry of Foreign Affairs)

Azerbaijani Foreign Minister Jeyhun Bayramov inaugurated Wednesday his country’s embassy in Tel Aviv.

Azerbaijan appointed its first ever ambassador to Israel on Wednesday, amid escalating tensions with its large southern neighbor Iran.

The step could worsen the trust crisis between Baku and its southern neighbor Tehran.

Bayramov arrived Wednesday morning in Tel Aviv and kicked off a series of meetings with politicians and economists.

He intends to visit Ramallah to meet Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas.

Bayramov commenced his meetings with Israeli Foreign Minister Eli Cohen.

Cohen said that they discussed fostering bilateral ties in economy, energy, education, academia, culture, sports, and more.

The Israeli FM stated that he intends to come on an official visit to Baku in the coming weeks at the head of an economic delegation.

"The opening of the Azeri embassy in Israel is further evidence of the strengthening of relations between our countries. Azerbaijan is a Muslim country, and its strategic location makes the relationship between us of great importance and great potential,” Cohen said.

“I agreed with Foreign Minister Bayramov on forming a united front against Iran and strengthening our cooperation in the fields of economy, security, energy, and innovation. I will soon go on a political visit to Baku together with a large economic delegation, which will further deepen the commercial ties between Israel and Azerbaijan," he added.

Bayramov stated that there is a joint purpose for both countries to cooperate to reach a strategic partnership that helps achieve regional peace and stability.

The Azerbaijani FM noted that Israel provides his country with huge and major aid to maintain its territories' safety and security and to restore parts occupied by Armenia.

Bayramov also pointed out an 85% growth in the trade turnover between the two countries in 2022.

Bayramov added that 114 Israeli companies operate in Azerbaijan and Azerbaijani oil makes up about 30% of the oil consumed by Israel.

Israel and Azerbaijan have had official ties for 30 years, and Israel first opened its embassy in Baku in 1993.

Israel was one of the first countries to recognize the independence of Azerbaijan in 1991.

Mukhtar Mammadov, the ambassador of Azerbaijan to Israel, presented on Monday his credentials to Israeli President Isaac Herzog.

Herzog said that Azerbaijan is the first Shiite country to open an embassy in Israel.

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Air Tankers Fight Los Angeles Fires from Frantic Skies

Water is dropped by helicopter on the Kenneth Fire in the West Hills section of Los Angeles, Thursday, Jan. 9, 2025. (AP Photo/Ethan Swope)
Water is dropped by helicopter on the Kenneth Fire in the West Hills section of Los Angeles, Thursday, Jan. 9, 2025. (AP Photo/Ethan Swope)
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Air Tankers Fight Los Angeles Fires from Frantic Skies

Water is dropped by helicopter on the Kenneth Fire in the West Hills section of Los Angeles, Thursday, Jan. 9, 2025. (AP Photo/Ethan Swope)
Water is dropped by helicopter on the Kenneth Fire in the West Hills section of Los Angeles, Thursday, Jan. 9, 2025. (AP Photo/Ethan Swope)

In the skies above Los Angeles, air tankers and helicopters silhouetted by the setting California sun dart in and out of giant wildfire plumes, dropping much-needed flame retardant and precious water onto the angry fires below.
Looking in almost any direction from a chopper above the city, AFP reporters witnessed half a dozen blazes -- eruptions of smoldering smoke emerging from the mountainous landscape like newly active volcanoes, and filling up the horizon.
Within minutes, a previously quiet airspace above the nascent Kenneth Fire had become a hotbed of frenzied activity, as firefighting officials quickly refocused their significant air resources on this latest blaze.
Around half a dozen helicopters buzzed at low altitude, tipping water onto the edge of the inferno.
Higher up, small aircraft periodically guided giant tankers that dumped bright-red retardant onto the flames.
"There's never been so many at the same time, just ripping" through the skies, said helicopter pilot Albert Azouz.
Flying for a private aviation company since 2016, he has seen plenty of fires including the deadly Malibu blazes of six years ago.
"That was insane," he recalled.
But this, he repeatedly says while hovering his helicopter above the chaos, is "crazy town."
The new Kenneth Fire burst into life late Thursday afternoon near Calabasas, a swanky enclave outside Los Angeles made famous by its celebrity residents such as reality television's Kardashian clan.
Aircraft including Boeing Chinook helitankers fitted with 3,000-gallon tanks have been brought in from as far afield as Canada.
Unable to fly during the first few hours of the Los Angeles fires on Tuesday due to gusts of up to 100 miles (160 kilometers) per hour, these have become an invaluable tool in the battle to contain blazes and reduce any further devastation.
Helicopters performed several hundred drops on Thursday, while conditions permitted.
Those helicopters equipped to operate at night continued to buzz around the smoke-filled region, working frantically to tackle the flames, before stronger gusts are forecast to sweep back in to the Los Angeles basin overnight.