Azerbaijan: Baku Tells Norway and Germany to Mind Their Own Business

Baku has demanded an explanation from the Norwegian and German embassies in Baku after diplomats from the two European states criticized the recent sentencing of two youth activists to prison, the APA news agency reported on November 17.

In a move widely condemned by international rights groups, a Baku court on November 11 sentenced youth activist-bloggers Emin Milli and Adnan Hadjizade to two and two-and-a-half years in jail, respectively, for hooliganism.

On November 16, Azerbaijan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs summoned the Norwegian and German chargés d'affaires, Lars Hansen and Peter Zigler, for explanations about the criticism. In a statement quoted by Kavkasky Uzel news website, the ministry charged that the comments amounted to interference in Azerbaijan's internal affairs.