Border guards down a drone from Iran carrying 6.6 kg of marijuana
Azerbaijan’s State Border Service said a UAV entering from Iran was detected and neutralised on 18 January 2026 in the Horadiz border detachment area, with 6 kilograms and 600 grams of marijuana found attached; investigators were still trying to identify those behind the smuggling attempt.
On 18 January 2026 the State Border Service said an unmanned aerial vehicle that
illegally entered Azerbaijani airspace from Iran was used to smuggle narcotics
into the country.[1][2]In the service area of the Horadiz border detachment,
border troops and the Ministry of Internal Affairs detected the UAV in time and
neutralised it before it completed its run.[1][2]
Inspecting the scene, officers seized6 kilograms and 600 grams of marijuana
attached to the aircraft.[1][2]The border service said operational and
investigative measures were continuing to identify those involved in the
attempted shipment.[1][2]News outlets published the account on 24 January
2026.[1][2]
Photos and video
Marijuana recovered from the neutralised drone near Horadiz, credited to the State Border ServicePhoto details
The border service reported the incident on 24 January 2026; no suspects were named and operational measures to identify organisers were said to be continuing.
Outlets did not describe how the UAV was neutralised or whether any ground arrests were made.
A coarse country-boundary check flags the Horadiz sector point against Iran’s polygon; the State Border Service placed the incident in Azerbaijan’s Horadiz detachment area.
Between January and September 2026 Azerbaijan seized 8.4 tonnes of drugs, including 7,236 kg of marijuana, 253 kg of hashish and 21,355 cannabis plants, the State Commission reported. Police detected 6,247 drug cases and held 4,352 people criminally liable, while the Interior Ministry put its own nine-month seizures at 6,443 kg.
Charged 4,352Plants destroyed 21,355Cannabis 7.49053271 t
Customs officers at South Astara found 97.685 kilograms of cannabis in 90 packages hidden under lettuce on a truck travelling from Iran to Russia. A customs dog indicated the pallet during an inspection, and the State Customs Committee reported that an investigation was under way.
In January–August 2026 the authorities recorded 5,561 drug crimes and seized 6,994.958 kg of narcotics and psychotropic substances, valued at 208.47 million manat, the State Commission for Combating Drug Addiction reported. Marijuana accounted for 5,928.805 kg and hashish for 247.630 kg, and officers also took 17,372 cannabis plants out of circulation.
Officers at the Bilasuvar customs post found 25 kg 570 g of dried marijuana in 80 packages hidden in the pallets of a lorry carrying onions from Iran to Russia via Azerbaijan. The State Customs Committee said an investigation was under way, and no arrest was reported.
