Azerbaijan arrested two Russian journalists on June 30 and ordered fresh autopsies on two Azerbaijani brothers killed by the Russian Federal Security Service (FSB) in Yekaterinburg, escalating diplomatic tensions with Moscow as both sides traded accusations over the killings that shocked Azerbaijan.

FSB forces killed the brothers and arrested nine others during violent raids on Azerbaijani homes in connection with a murder investigation in Yekaterinburg on June 27. The raids triggered a strong diplomatic response from Azerbaijan, after relations between Baku and Moscow were previously soured by the downing of an Azerbaijani AZAL aircraft by Russian air defences.

The bodies of brothers Ziyaddin and Husein Safarov arrived in Azerbaijan on June 30 and were handed over to relatives. The victims will undergo new medical examinations before burial in Agjabadi, according to the APA news agency.

Seyfaddin Huseynli, brother of the killed men and a prominent journalist, announced Azerbaijan would conduct independent medical examinations. "We are certain that Russia's fabricated autopsy report does not reflect the truth, so the bodies will undergo fresh medical examination in Azerbaijan, and it will become clear what really caused our brothers' deaths," he told reporters, according to APA.

Huseynli expressed gratitude for Azerbaijan's exposure of what he termed Russia's "intelligence network" in the country. "The exposure of Russia's spy network in Azerbaijan these days brought water to our family's heart. For all our compatriots, this was consolation. I thank the Azerbaijani state both on my own behalf and on behalf of people who suffered from Russia's merciless regime," he said.

Tit-for-tat arrests

Hours after the bodies' return, Azerbaijan's interior ministry conducted operations at Sputnik Azerbaijan's Baku office, arresting executive director Igor Kartavykh and chief editor Yevgeny Belousov. The Russian state media outlet's operations were suspended in February 2025, though staff continued working illegally, according to a statement from the ministry.

The interior ministry said investigations began based on operational intelligence that the agency continued activities through illegal financing despite accreditation suspension. "On June 30, search operations were conducted at the branch office, and there are detainees," the ministry confirmed to APA.

Russia immediately summoned Azerbaijan's ambassador Rahman Mustafayev over what Moscow termed "unfriendly actions" and "illegal detention of Russian journalists". Foreign ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova expressed concern that Russian diplomats in Baku could not contact the journalists for several hours and were denied consular access. 

"The detainees are Russian citizens of Azerbaijani origin. They were arrested as part of an investigation into serious crimes committed in previous years. The investigation is ongoing," she said, according to JAMnews. She confirmed that Russia's chargé d'affaires provided clarification to the Azerbaijani foreign ministry on June 28.

Unprecedented media condemnation

Azerbaijani state media’s has launched its harshest ever criticism of Russian President Vladimir Putin personally. In an evening news broadcast on June 29, state channel AzTV described Russia as a "prison of nations”, according to JAMnews.

"What's wrong, Mr. Putin? Are you so disturbed by the fact that Azerbaijan has become a strong regional power, has returned its territories for the first time in 200 years, and defended its national interests?" the anchor declared, referring to Azerbaijan’s recovery of Nagorno Karabakh after decades under Armenian control. 

"You are used to ruling over people forcibly absorbed into your empire. In tsarist and Soviet times, Russians were treated as a superior race," he said. "This is a systematic policy directed by Vladimir Putin," the AzTV presenter stated, drawing parallels with Russian actions in Ukraine.

Later broadcasts compared current Russian policy to 1930s Germany, whilst state agency Azertag published commentary directly accusing Putin of systematic persecution. 

European Union ambassador to Azerbaijan Peter Michalko became the first senior Western diplomat to condemn the Yekaterinburg killings. "I am deeply concerned by reports of violence, torture and inhuman treatment by Russian security forces against ethnic Azerbaijanis, even resulting in deaths. My thoughts are with the victims and their families," he wrote on social media.

Opposition leader Ali Karimli of the Azerbaijani Popular Front Party delivered one of the strongest reactions to the Yekaterinburg killings. Speaking to JAMnews, he argued the incident was directly ordered by Putin rather than a law enforcement initiative. "Moscow wants to see Azerbaijan as a fully submissive vassal and seems confident it has already achieved that," Karimli stated. He attributed this confidence to "Azerbaijan's internal weaknesses: corruption, economic monopolies, the collapse of democratic institutions, and the concentration of political power in the hands of one man."

Karimli issued a direct challenge to Azerbaijan's leadership: "Either submit to the demands of the Russian Empire and effectively accept the role of its governor, or open up to the people and the international community, and show political will to defend independence and citizens' rights," he said.

Political analyst Shahinoglu connected the incident to Azerbaijan's February closure of the Russian House cultural centre in Baku and restrictions on Sputnik's activities. This suggests the Yekaterinburg killings represent retaliation for Azerbaijan's efforts to limit Russian soft power influence.

Historian Altay Goyushov told JAMnews the incident highlights structural problems forcing Azerbaijanis to seek work in Russia. "People go there not for prosperity, but simply to have the opportunity to work freely," he argued, noting that Azerbaijan lacks sufficient economic freedoms for its own citizens. "For comparison: I recently learned that the Azerbaijani government lifted visa requirements for Chinese citizens long ago, but China still hasn't lifted visas for Azerbaijanis. Why? Because they know Azerbaijanis are ready to accept anything and go anywhere, just to escape the problems in their own country," Goyushov said.

Sputnik Azerbaijan previously targeted Azerbaijani journalists working for AbzasMedia, Toplum TV and Meydan TV, accusing them of working for Western intelligence. Arrests of the journalists started after this targeted attack. Commenting on this, Goyushov told bne IntelliNews that “[Azerbaijani President Ilham] Aliyev’s regime had just told them to write [the article], so they did." Goyushov believes that Aliyev used Sputnik for his own interests. "It’s their old habit. Finding a scapegoat never causes any difficulty — there’s always some housing office manager they can throw under the bus," he concluded.

Russian criminal allegations

Russian authorities provided their first detailed justification for the FSB operation, claiming the Safarov brothers led an ethnic criminal organisation active since the late 1990s. TASS quoted law enforcement sources alleging the group engaged in "illegal activities selling drugs, alcoholic and tobacco products, gambling, supervising prostitution and distributing pornographic materials."

The sources claimed one victim was an entrepreneur who refused to pay protection money and was murdered by the group. They also suggested possible links to mass alcohol poisoning in Yekaterinburg in 2021 and ownership of kiosks selling counterfeit goods.

Russia's Investigative Committee has opened criminal cases under multiple articles, including group murder, contract killing and attempted contract murder relating to incidents in 2001, 2010 and 2011. Six suspects were charged, with three Safarov family members receiving 22-day detention orders.

The timing and nature of Russia's criminal allegations raise significant credibility concerns. No charges were filed against the family during 24 years of alleged criminal activity, despite Russian authorities claiming detailed knowledge of their operations since the late 1990s.

The decision to conduct lethal raids rather than standard arrests for historical crimes appears disproportionate, particularly given torture allegations from defence lawyers. According to pro-government outlets in Azerbaijan, the operation's timing — immediately following Azerbaijan's demands for accountability over the AZAL aircraft downing — suggests political rather than criminal motivation.

Russian authorities have not explained why two suspects were killed rather than arrested, nor addressed allegations of torture and property theft during the raids. Defence lawyers report that the only evidence comprises confessions obtained under duress and testimony from unnamed witnesses.

Escalating diplomatic crisis

The journalists' arrests are Azerbaijan's most direct retaliation against Russian interests since independence. Unlike previous diplomatic protests, Baku has now demonstrated a willingness to target Russian state media operations and personnel.

This follows Azerbaijan's cancellation of cultural events and parliamentary cooperation, suggesting a coordinated strategy to impose costs on Russia across multiple sectors. The foreign ministry has yet to respond to Russia's diplomatic protest, indicating Baku intends to maintain pressure. 

The crisis occurs against the backdrop of the exposure of Russia's intelligence network in Azerbaijan, which Huseynli referenced as providing "consolation" to affected families. This suggests broader Azerbaijani counterintelligence operations targeting Russian influence networks. In May 2025, Ramid Namazov, head of the Azerbaijani parliamentary commission on hybrid threats, openly accused Russia of orchestrating the intrusion, citing digital fingerprints linked to Russian intelligence infrastructure.

Earlier in April 2025, Azerbaijani ruling party MP Azer Badamov, travelling as part of an official delegation to Astrakhan for commemorations of former Azerbaijani president Heydar Aliyev’s 102nd anniversary, was detained at Moscow’s Vnukovo Airport. Russian authorities informed him he was banned from entering the country. He was denied boarding for his internal connecting flight and returned to Baku without explanation. 

As of June 30, President Aliyev had issued no public statement on the FSB killings, despite his established personal alliance with Putin.