By all appearances, a new front has opened inside Russia—not in Ukraine, but in Yekaterinburg, where Azerbaijani residents are now under assault. Over the past few days, the Federal Security Service (FSB) has carried out a wave of raids targeting Azerbaijanis, resulting in deaths, arrests, and rising fear within the diaspora. What Moscow describes as an investigation into a 24-year-old murder looks, in reality, like a politically motivated crackdown.
The official story begins with a homicide committed in 2001—allegedly the killing of a man named Yunis from Azerbaijan’s Aghdam region. For nearly a quarter-century, Russian law enforcement showed no interest in the case. Yet suddenly, in late June 2025, the FSB declared it a “high-priority” investigation and launched a military-style operation. It’s hard to believe this is a coincidence. The revival of this dormant case has all the hallmarks of a broader campaign designed to pressure and intimidate the Azerbaijani community.
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Source: Modern.Az
According to local reports, two brothers—Huseyn and Ziyaddin Safarov—were killed during the raids. Huseyn was an Azerbaijani citizen; Ziyaddin held Russian citizenship. Both were from Aghdam and ran the “Caspian” restaurant in Yekaterinburg. A third man, their cousin Kamal Safarov, was also reportedly killed during the operation. Nine others were detained, with some allegedly subjected to beatings. The Azerbaijani Ministry of Foreign Affairs condemned the actions and demanded a full investigation and accountability from Russian authorities.
Eyewitnesses told the regional news outlet E1.RU that dozens of Azerbaijanis were being rounded up and taken to FSB headquarters. “They’re grabbing people off the streets. Some were summoned by phone, others are hiding,” one witness reported.
Let’s not pretend this is just about a cold case. Russia has used its diaspora communities as geopolitical pawns before. The timing of this crackdown is telling: it follows a period of growing tension between Moscow and Baku. Azerbaijan’s refusal to align itself with certain Russian interests has long irritated the Kremlin. This isn’t the first time Moscow has applied pressure through the diaspora. But this time, the methods are more brutal, the message more explicit.
What’s unfolding in Yekaterinburg is more than an attack on migrants. It’s a campaign of targeted ethnic discrimination against Azerbaijanis—including Russian citizens. In doing so, the Russian state is sending a signal to Azerbaijan’s leadership: defy Moscow, and your people—no matter where they live—will pay the price.
This crackdown also mirrors a disturbing domestic trend. Since the start of its war against Ukraine, Russia’s treatment of migrants has turned increasingly inhumane. Many are coerced into military service through threats, fabricated charges, or pressure on their families. Even those who comply receive little in return—many are denied promised compensation or benefits. For the Russian state, migrants are expendable bodies. Not even second-class citizens—just cannon fodder.
Russia’s domestic climate has also grown hostile toward its own non-Slavic citizens. A wave of chauvinistic fervor, encouraged by officials and applauded by nationalist media, has turned ethnic minorities into political scapegoats. Propagandists like Vladimir Solovyov—never known for subtlety—now openly embrace anti-Azerbaijani narratives. Solovyov doesn’t invent policy; he mirrors the Kremlin’s line. And right now, that line is xenophobic.
The irony, of course, is that Russia is picking fights with a nation it has already wronged. Azerbaijan has not forgotten the downing of a civilian aircraft by Russian air defenses—an act for which Moscow has neither accepted responsibility nor paid compensation. Nor does it ignore the recent decision to deny entry to an Azerbaijani member of parliament without warning. Or the cyberattacks on Azerbaijani media, traced to Russian-linked hacking group APT29. The message from Moscow is unmistakable: there will be consequences for Baku’s independence.
What’s truly alarming is the calculated nature of these provocations. This isn’t state failure—it’s state policy. Russia, increasingly isolated and weakened by a war it cannot win, is lashing out at soft targets. Migrants and minorities are the easiest to bully. The Kremlin wants to remind someone—anyone—that it still has the power to make people afraid. But that power is fading.
This isn’t fear. It’s desperation. And the world should recognize it as such.
