BAKU, Azerbaijan — Police raids on religious communities have continued to take place at a disturbing rate, religious liberty news service Forum 18 has found.
The raids are taking place especially at summer camps and open-air preaching events outside the confines of state-registered religious buildings.
Baptists are among those who have been attacked by the authorities.
Nakhichevan, an exclave wedged between Turkey, Armenia and Iran, is the “worst region in the country” for religious freedom, an observer said, echoing an observation that people of several faiths have frequently shared with Forum 18.
One of the most serious attacks on a religious community was a raid on a Baptist children’s summer camp, in which ordinary police and National Security Ministry secret police officers arrived “in many cars, shouting and swearing, even at the women,” reported a church member who was handcuffed and beaten up in front of children.
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