After Israel and Iran's conflict, now tension is escalating between Russia and Azerbaijan following the arrest of journalists in Baku, Azerbaijan, as per a report. These arrests happened after Russia arrested ethnic Azerbaijanis suspected of serious crimes, as reported by Reuters.
Journalists Arrested in Baku After Police Raid
On Monday, Azerbaijani authorities detained two senior journalists from Sputnik Azerbaijan, the local arm of Russia’s state-owned RIA news agency, after raiding their offices in Baku. The country's Interior Ministry said that it had launched an investigation, and the police in Baku revealed that they investigated Sputnik Azerbaijan over illegal funding, reported Reuters.Shortly after the raid, Azerbaijan's Interior Ministry released footage showing the two journalists, including the agency's chief editor, being led to police vans in handcuffs, according to the report. Another journalist from the Russian outlet Ruptly was also reportedly detained while trying to film the police action at the Sputnik offices in Baku, as reported by Reuters.
Russia Reacts
Azerbaijan's government had already shuttered the outlet in February, but it has continued to operate with fewer staff, and General Director of Rossiya Segodnya, Dmitry Kiselev, said that Sputnik and Azerbaijani officials had been trying to work on a temporary agreement to let Sputnik continue operations in Baku, according to a Reuters report.
Kiselev wrote on the Telegram messaging app, that Russia was shocked at the actions of Azerbaijani security officials leading staff members away "with their arms twisted and their heads bowed, as though they were terrorists," adding, "This all looks like a deliberate step aimed at worsening relations between our countries," as quoted in the Reuters report.
Russia Summons Azerbaijani Ambassador
When the raid on Sputnik Azerbaijan was going on, Russia summoned Azerbaijan's ambassador to Moscow over what it described as Baku's "unfriendly actions" and the "illegal detention" of Russian journalists working in the country, as reported by Reuters.
Ethnic Azerbaijanis Arrested in Russia
This comes as tensions between Russia and Azerbaijan, which was a former Soviet republic in the South Caucasus, had already started intensifying in recent days after investigators in Yekaterinburg, a Russian industrial city, arrested six people following a slew of raids in connection with historic unsolved crimes, including serial killings, as per the report.
Russian investigators said they had detained six people, all of whom had Russian passports, reported Reuters. They also revealed that two suspects had passed away, and said that one of the suspects died of heart failure, and medical tests would reveal the cause of death of another suspect, as reported by Reuters.
While Azerbaijan's Interior Ministry has identified the people detained in Russia as ethnic Azerbaijanis, according to the report. Baku even accused the Russian police of carrying out extrajudicial killings "on ethnic grounds"; however, this allegation was rejected by Moscow, according to the report.
FAQs
Why were Russian journalists arrested in Azerbaijan?
Azerbaijan says it is investigating Sputnik Azerbaijan for alleged illegal funding, while Russia claims the arrests were illegal, as per the Reuters report.
Who were the journalists arrested?
Two senior editors from Sputnik Azerbaijan, including the chief editor, were detained during the raid in Baku, as per the Reuters report.