Azerbaijani police raid Sputnik office in Baku after deadly Russia crackdown
Photo: Security forces conduct searches of Russian propagandists in Azerbaijan (Getty Images)
In the capital of Azerbaijan, Baku, police conducted searches at the office of the Russian propaganda agency Sputnik-Azerbaijan. This happened after raids by Russian security forces in Yekaterinburg, where several Azerbaijanis were killed and dozens more detained, Vesti.az reports.
Azerbaijani police conducted searches at the office of Sputnik-Azerbaijan in Baku. However, the reasons for the inspection have not been officially announced, nor have the results of the investigative actions.
"Despite the official suspension of Sputnik-Azerbaijan’s activity, the agency in fact continued its work, and employees regularly visited the office," the agency writes.
It is known that Sputnik-Azerbaijan is part of the Russian state media holding Rossiya Segodnya (Russia Today), which is subordinate to the Kremlin.
Background
The searches took place against the backdrop of a loud incident in Yekaterinburg, where Russian security forces detained nine Azerbaijanis, accusing them of contract killings. During the operation, two brothers were killed, and several others were hospitalized.
Following this, the Ministry of Culture of Azerbaijan announced the cancellation of all cultural events that were planned in the country by Russian state or private organizations. The ban applies to concerts, performances, festivals, exhibitions, and other events.
The decision was made "in connection with demonstrative, targeted, and extrajudicial killings and acts of violence committed by Russian law enforcement agencies against Azerbaijanis in Yekaterinburg."
The ministry emphasized that such incidents "have recently taken on a systemic nature."
In September 2023, Azerbaijan conducted a military operation in Nagorno-Karabakh, which was officially called "anti-terrorist measures." These actions effectively ended the armed confrontation between Azerbaijan and Armenia. However, a full-fledged peace agreement between the states has not yet been signed.
Russia also participated in the conflict: its so-called peacekeeping contingent was stationed in the Nagorno-Karabakh region under the guise of a stabilization mission.
