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Azeri police detain six supporters of Movement for Muslim Unity after its leader’s arrest triggered clashes in Nardaran

Six people supporting the Movement for Muslim Unity have been detained by Azeri law enforcement bodies in the country’s western city of Ganja, Azerbaijan’s Interior Ministry said in a statement, Interfax-Religion reports.

Automatic weapons, grenade launchers, a large number of bullets of various calibers, bulletproof vests and religious literature were confiscated from the suspects’ houses, it said.

Seven people, including two policemen, were killed in an armed clash in the village of Nardaran, which is part of Azerbaijan’s capital Baku, last Thursday. There were also reports of injured people. Fourteen people were arrested after those events.

The Turan news agency reported, citing sources in law enforcement agencies, that on November 26 police had conducted an operation to detain Movement for Muslim Unity leader Talekh Bagirzade, but his supporters had tried to prevent Bagirzade’s detention. According to some media reports, the operation was carried out at a mosque during a midday prayer, a circumstance that provoked a fierce response from worshippers.

The population of Nardaran is known for its extreme religious views.

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