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Deaths of Azerbaijani Brothers in Russian Raid Deepen Moscow-Baku Rift

13 posts • OpenAI (o3)

Updated Jul 1, 2025, 02:02 AM

Two Azerbaijani brothers, Huseyn and Ziyaddin Safarov, were shot dead on 27 June when Russian special-forces officers stormed the family-run Caspian Café in Yekaterinburg as part of an investigation into a string of murders committed between 2001 and 2011. Russian media say more than 50 ethnic Azerbaijanis were detained during the sweep; the Investigative Committee has since charged at least six suspects and taken control of the probe after the deaths triggered public outcry.

The brothers’ bodies were flown to Baku on 30 June. Azerbaijan’s authorities said they will conduct a second autopsy, arguing that Moscow’s explanation—heart failure in one case and an undetermined cause in the other—fails to address allegations of excessive force and possible torture. The EU’s envoy in Baku called the operation “inhuman.”

Angered by the incident, Azerbaijan cancelled upcoming Russian cultural programmes, suspended a visit by a Russian deputy prime minister and summoned Moscow’s chargé d’affaires. Baku also raided the local office of state-run Sputnik, detaining two staff members for allegedly operating despite an order to cease activities.

Moscow protested the detentions, with Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov saying Russia “regrets” Azerbaijan’s retaliatory measures and urging clarification of the events in Yekaterinburg. Russia’s human-rights ombudsman asked the Prosecutor General to review the initial police actions, while hearings for the surviving suspects continue in a Yekaterinburg court amid heightened bilateral tension.

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#Azerbaijani #Huseyn #Ziyaddin Safarov #Russian #Caspian Café #Yekaterinburg #Azerbaijanis #Investigative Committee #Baku #Azerbaijan #Moscow #EU #Sputnik #Kremlin #Dmitry Peskov #Russia

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azertag.az(9)vedomosti.ru(3)www3.nhk.or.jp msn.com

Mario Nawfal

@MarioNawfal

🇪🇺🇷🇺🇦🇿 EU SLAMS RUSSIA OVER DEADLY ARRESTS OF AZERIS Russia raided a group of ethnic Azeris over a 23-year-old murder case. Two died during the arrest and others were badly beaten. The EU’s ambassador to Azerbaijan called it “inhuman” and said it looked a lot like torture.

NHKニュース

@nhk_news

Relations between Azerbaijan and Russia deteriorated in the wake of the passenger plane crash #nhk_news

JAMnews

@JAMnewsCaucasus

The bodies of Huseyn and Ziyaddin Safarov have been delivered to Baku. They were killed by Russian special forces in Yekaterinburg during the raid on the Caspian café, owned by their family of ethnic Azerbaijanis. At the same time, violent searches were carried out in their