Azeri police officers detain a protester in Ismayilli, some 175 kilometers (110 miles) from the capital Baku, Azerbaijan, January 24, 2013.
Police in central Azerbaijan have clashed with thousands of people protesting against local authorities.
On Thursday, thousands of people demonstrated near the residential building of the local governor in the city of Ismayilli, situated some 175 kilometers (110 miles) from the capital Baku. The protesters demanded the governor’s resignation. They also torched the governor’s house.
According to witnesses, police used tear gas, rubber bullets, and water cannons to disperse the angry protesters. Reports say scores of people were arrested and several law enforcement officers injured. The Ismaili district police said the injured were transferred to local hospitals for medical treatment.
The unrest began when Emil Shamsaddinov, a 22-year-old local hotel owner, got into a fight with a local motorist after a minor car crash. Ismayilli residents reacted angrily, setting fire to the owner’s hotel — Chyrag Hotel– as well as several of his cars.
The hotel was reportedly used for prostitution. Reports say that local officials had failed to heed demands for the hotel to be shut.
Unrest of this kind against authorities is rare in Azerbaijan.
MAM/HN
