A Russian media outlet is raided in Azerbaijan’s capital as tensions rise between Moscow and Baku

BAKU, Azerbaijan (AP) – Police in Azerbaijan’s capital of Baku searched the offices of Russia’s state-funded news outlet Sputnik on Monday, local media reported, as tensions rose between the two countries after the deaths of two ethnic Azerbaijanis during a police raid last week in the Russian city of Yekaterinburg.

Azerbaijan’s Ministry of Internal Affairs said it was investigating claims that Sputnik Azerbaijan was continuing its work despite having its license revoked in February 2025, media outlets said.

Russian diplomatic representatives in Baku went to the Sputnik offices to investigate, said Margarita Simonyan, editor-in-chief of broadcaster RT as well as editor of the state-funded media group Rossiya Segodnya, which operates Sputnik.

“We are unable to reach our Azerbaijan bureau staff by phone after local media announced a ‘special security operation’ against our staff, which includes Russian citizens,” Simonyan posted on X. “Representatives from our embassy are attempting to gain access.”

The search followed official protests from Baku after Russian police raided the homes of ethnic Azerbaijanis in the Ural Mountains city of Yekaterinburg on Friday.

Two brothers, Ziyaddin and Huseyn Safarov, were killed, and several others were seriously injured during the raids, officials said, with nine people detained.

Sayfaddin Huseynli, a brother of the two dead Azerbaijanis, told The Associated Press the raids were “an inhumane, cruel act by Russia against migrants – an act of intimidation.”

One of the dead was a Russian citizen and the other held both Russian and Azerbaijani citizenship, Huseynli said. Their bodies were being returned to Azerbaijan on Monday.

He earlier told Azerbaijani public broadcaster ITV that the men were beaten and subjected to electric shocks “without any trial or investigation.”

“The so-called Russian law enforcement agencies broke into houses in the middle of the night, beat and took people away like animals,” he told the broadcaster.

Azerbaijan’s Foreign Ministry said it expected “that the matter will be investigated and all perpetrators of violence brought to justice as soon as possible.”

Russia’s Investigative Committee said Monday that one of the deaths was from heart failure. It did not provide details on the second victim, but said a medical examination would be conducted to determine the exact cause of death for both men.

It also said the raids were part of an investigation into several murders spanning more than two decades.

Officials in Baku responded by canceling a scheduled trip to Moscow by Azerbaijani officials, citing the “targeted extrajudicial killings and violence against Azerbaijanis on the basis of their nationality” by Russian law enforcement. It also canceled a planned visit to Baku by a Russian deputy prime minister, and the Culture Ministry called off concerts, exhibitions, festivals and performances by Russian state and private institutions.

Moscow has maintained a muted response to Azerbaijan’s actions. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Monday he “sincerely regretted” Baku’s decision to cancel the events.

He also said Moscow would continue to “explain the reason and nature” of the Yekaterinburg raids.

“Everything that took place is related to the work of law enforcement agencies, and that cannot and should not be a reason for such a reaction. We are interested in further developing our good relations with Azerbaijan,” he said.

Ties between Moscow and Baku have been strained for months. On Dec. 25, 2024, an Azerbaijani passenger jet was hit by fire from the ground as it approached Grozny, the regional capital of the Russian republic of Chechnya, Azerbaijani officials said. It diverted to nearby Kazakhstan, where it crashed while attempting to land, killing 38 of 67 people aboard.

Azerbaijan President Ilham Aliyev said it was shot down over Russia, albeit unintentionally, and rendered uncontrollable by electronic warfare measures amid allegations that Russian air defense systems were trying to fend off a Ukrainian drone strike near Grozny.

Aliyev accused Russia of trying to “hush up” what happened for several days. Russian President Vladimir Putin apologized to Aliyev for what he called a “tragic incident” but stopped short of acknowledging responsibility.

In May, Aliyev declined to attend Russia’s Victory Day parade in Moscow.

Later that month, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha visited Azerbaijan, signaling closer ties between Baku and Kyiv.