In Yekaterinburg, security forces staged raids on Azerbaijanis because of murders 20 years ago. Two people died during arrest

The Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry called the actions of Russian security forces “unacceptable violence”

In Yekaterinburg, security forces carried out raids against Azerbaijanis over murder cases in 2001–2011. As a result of the raids, two people died and at least three more men were taken to hospital. The Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry called the actions of the security forces “unacceptable violence” and summoned the Russian ambassador.

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Two brothers were killed during the raids. One of the victims is in intensive care

The raids took place on Friday, June 27. As reported by the Investigative Committee for the Sverdlovsk Region, security forces carried out “a set of measures as part of the investigation of criminal cases regarding crimes of past years.” According to media reports, “dozens of people associated with the diaspora” were interrogated, and searches were also carried out in the Baku Plaza shopping center, which is associated with the head of the Azerbaijani diaspora in Yekaterinburg.

During the raids, brothers Huseyn and Ziyaddin Safarov, owners of the Caspian cafe, were killed, their acquaintance said. According to him, one of the brothers felt bad, “he grabbed his heart.” “They called an ambulance, provided assistance, tried to pump him out, but they couldn’t save him. He was no longer young,” an acquaintance of the victims told E1.

Three more men were taken to hospital after the raids. One of them, the brother of the victims, Kamal Safarov, is in intensive care. Two more victims - Akhliman Ganjiev and Aziz Abasov - are involved in the case in connection with which the raids took place. The publication Oxu.Аz also published photographs of two people - Ramil and Mohammed Safarov - with bruises on their bodies and hemorrhage in the eye. Journalists claim that Azerbaijanis were beaten and tortured.

In total, 15 people are involved in the case, three of them were sent to pre-trial detention center

As the department of the Investigative Committee for the Sverdlovsk Region explained on June 28, during the raids the activities of an ethnic criminal group were “suppressed.” A criminal case was opened against its participants for murder by a group of persons by prior conspiracy, contract murder and attempted murder. According to investigators, they are involved in a number of murders and attempted murders committed in Yekaterinburg in 2001, 2010 and 2011.

In addition to Ganjiev and Abasov, 13 more people are involved in the case, including nine Safarov brothers. In total, according to E1, almost 50 Azerbaijanis were detained.

On June 29, the Leninsky District Court of Yekaterinburg sent three suspects in the murder case to pre-trial detention: the brothers Mazahir, Ayaz and Akif Safarov. Mazahir's lawyer told reporters that during the arrest, security forces broke his client's ribs. Ayaz was in court with bruises on his face; he told reporters that he fell “before he was detained.” Three more detainees - Ganjiev, Shahin Lalaev and Bakira Safarov - had their detention period extended by 72 hours. Doctors allowed Ganjiev to participate in the meeting to select a preventive measure despite the injuries received during the raid.

Azerbaijani authorities called the actions of Russian security forces “unacceptable violence”

The Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry called the actions of Russian security forces “unacceptable violence” and called on Russia to investigate the detentions of Azerbaijanis. On Saturday, June 28, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs summoned the charge d'affaires of the Russian Embassy in Azerbaijan, Pyotr Volokov.

The official representative of the Russian Foreign Ministry, Maria Zakharova, responded that the detainees were “citizens of Russia, immigrants from Azerbaijan.” She also said that Volokov “gave the necessary explanations to the Azerbaijani side and assured that the situation is under the control of law enforcement agencies.”

On June 28, the head of the Investigative Committee, Alexander Bastrykin, instructed the head of the agency’s department for the Sverdlovsk region to submit a detailed report on the detentions of Azerbaijanis and the deaths of two people.

In Azerbaijan, after the arrests, all cultural events planned by Russia were canceled - concerts, festivals, performances, exhibitions and others. The Ministry of Culture of Azerbaijan called the actions of Russian security forces “deliberate and extrajudicial killings and acts of violence,” and also stated that “recently, such cases have become systematic.”

A search was carried out at the office of Sputnik Azerbaijan in Baku.

In addition, on June 30, a search was carried out in Baku at the office of the Russian propaganda news agency Sputnik Azerbaijan. Margarita Simonyan, editor-in-chief of the Rossiya Segodnya media group, which includes the agency, said that employees of the Russian Embassy in Baku went to the publication’s office. “The employees don’t get in touch - obviously they don’t have access to the phone. Among them are Russian citizens,” she said.

The activities of Sputnik Azerbaijan were officially suspended back in February. Then the representative of the Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry Aykhan Hajizade announced the liquidation of the publication and added that it could receive accreditation for the work of one correspondent. Despite this, as the local publication Report writes , “it turned out that the agency continues its activities, and its employees go to work.”

Relations between Russia and Azerbaijan began to deteriorate after an Azerbaijan Airlines (AZAL) plane crashed in Aktau on December 25, flying from Baku to Grozny. The day after the crash, Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev said that the plane “was damaged externally near the city of Grozny in Russia and actually lost control.” According to him, the plane was shot down by accident. He later stated that in the first three days he heard “nothing but delusional versions” from Russia.

Numerous through holes were visible on the tail of the plane. Z-channels, OSINT analysts and the National Security and Defense Council (NSDC) of Ukraine said that they were similar to the consequences of a missile strike.

In February, the Azerbaijani authorities notified Rossotrudnichestvo about the closure of their “Russian House” project in Baku. According to Azerbaijani media, the decision of the Azerbaijani authorities is explained by a “consistent course to protect national interests.”

Photo: Akif Safarov in court, E1.RU

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