Azerbaijan’s Interior Ministry raids Russian media organization
(MENAFN) Azerbaijan’s Interior Ministry confirmed that it had conducted a raid on the Baku bureau of the Russian state-run news outlet Sputnik, in what appears to be a response to growing diplomatic tensions between Baku and Moscow.
Local reports indicated a significant police presence outside the building housing the Sputnik newsroom in Azerbaijan’s capital on Monday. The news organization’s headquarters in Moscow stated that it has lost contact with its journalists in the country.
Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova voiced concern over the situation, noting that Azerbaijani authorities have yet to respond to formal inquiries submitted by the Russian government.
The operation in Baku is believed to be linked to the recent arrest of several ethnic Azerbaijani individuals in Russia, who were accused by authorities there of participating in a criminal group allegedly involved in multiple murders in the city of Ekaterinburg.
According to Russia’s Investigative Committee, the suspected crimes date back over two decades and were aimed at controlling segments of the local business sector. The agency also revealed that one of the murder victims held Azerbaijani citizenship.
Officials in Azerbaijan expressed anger over the deaths of two men who were among those targeted in the Russian crackdown. Domestic media reports accused Russian authorities of singling out Azerbaijani nationals based on ethnicity. Russian investigators said one of the men died from a heart attack, while the cause of death of the second has not yet been disclosed.
In what appears to be retaliatory action, Azerbaijani authorities have canceled several Russian cultural events. The Kremlin responded by labeling the developments “regrettable.” Presidential spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said Moscow “will keep explaining the causes and the nature of the events, which the Azerbaijani side cites as the reason for such demarches.”
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