Azerbaijani man tortured in Russia: "They beat my uncles in front of my father"

Russian law enforcement agencies raided not only homes but also the family-run café of the Azerbaijani-origin Russian citizens Safarovs in Yekaterinburg, son of cafe owner Elgiz Safarov said.

Speaking to APA, Elgiz Safarov, a member of the Azerbaijani Safarov family residing in Yekaterinburg for over three decades, shared harrowing details of a brutal raid conducted by masked Russian law enforcement officers on June 27, saying that he and his relatives were subjected to violent beatings, torture, and humiliation during the operation, Caliber.Az reports.

He stated that the early morning operation began with officers storming their family home and detaining his father, Akif Safarov, at around 5 a.m.

Later that day, at approximately 2 p.m., Elgiz visited the family-owned café to check on staff, only to witness another raid. According to his account, masked men forcefully entered the premises without presenting any official documents, ordering everyone to the ground and initiating violent assaults. 

“They shot the security guard in the eye, he now needs surgery. One of our employees had his jaw broken. Then they started humiliating and insulting us... They kept beating us and saying, 'We'll chop you up and kill you','" Safarov said. He added that the attackers smashed surveillance cameras and demanded to know where the memory cards were located.

"After they had their surveillance cameras removed, they started beating us. When they found out that I was the son of the cafe owner, they demanded that I cook kebabs. They broke the dishes in the cafe. When we were cooking kebabs, they came and hit us from behind with a truncheon. They kept us lying on the floor in the cafe for about 2 and a half hours. They ate and drank, beat us again and left,” he recalled.

He also reported that his father and uncles were severely beaten, with some sustaining broken ribs. Two of his uncles later died, Elgiz said, adding that his father remains in police custody. 

“They beat my uncles in front of my father,” he said.

Elgiz Safarov noted that his father and uncles were detained in 2001 on suspicion of the murder of another Azerbaijani.

“I don’t know who exactly was killed at the time. Now they’re demanding that our relatives take the blame for that crime,” he stated. 

As reported earlier, during a raid carried out by Russian the Federal Security Service (FSB) two brothers — Ziyaddin and Huseyn Safarov — were killed inside their home, and several other family members were allegedly beaten. Four — Akif, Ayaz, Kamal, and Mazahir Safarov — remain in critical condition in hospital. In total, nine individuals were detained, while dozens more were temporarily held and later released.

In response, Azerbaijan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs lodged a strong diplomatic protest and called on Russia to conduct a thorough investigation and hold those responsible for the violence accountable.

By Sabina Mammadli