The protest started following an incident in which a Sighirli village resident was physically attacked by a member of the local council.
Videos shared on social media show a mass protest by Sighirli village residents in Kurdamir in response to police brutality.
The footage from June 16 shows a local government official requesting money from a villager engaged in small-scale roadside trading in Sighirli village.
This resulted in a confrontation between the two, during which the local government official assaulted the villager, causing physical injuries.
In response, the villagers staged a protest by blocking the Baku-Gazakh highway.
Elkhan Ibrahimov, the head of the executive authority, and prosecutor Tural Ibrahimov arrived at the scene.
Protesters informed the district police chief and the prosecutor that local officers were harassing and extorting money from individuals involved in small-scale trading within the village and along the roadside.
A relative of the villager who was allegedly assaulted by a local police officer claimed that the man’s arm had been broken.
The head of the executive authority and the prosecutor assured the protesters that the issue would be thoroughly investigated.
The Ministry of Internal Affairs stated that police officers intervened to stop a group of people engaged in dangerous street trading on a busy road in Sighirli village, Kurdamir.
The ministry refrained from commenting on the accusation that a villager was assaulted.
They explained that only preventive measures and advisory talks were conducted with those individuals.
Speaking to Meydan TV, Amir Shahbazov, Head of the Information Support Department of the Kurdamir District Governor’s Office, said the incident was resolved quickly:
“The incident occurred last night when a disagreement arose between a street vendor and a local commissioner, leading to the vendor being taken to the police station. Afterwards, the vendor’s relatives staged a protest, which was soon joined by other villagers who took to the streets. The road was blocked for approximately 10 to 15 minutes. The head of the executive authority arrived, spoke with the crowd, and the situation was then resolved. Law enforcement agencies are currently investigating the matter.”
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