Protestsupdated 1h ago2 min read
Azerbaijan Hijab Ban Excludes Girls From Schools, Detains Protesters, Escalates Rift With Turkey
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Azerbaijan bans hijab in public schools, excluding girls from classrooms. Dozens detained as protests erupt over school dress rules.
Baku and Turkey Rift
Azerbaijan’s school dress regulations triggered protests after girls wearing Islamic headscarves were excluded from classrooms and teachers were reportedly ordered to remove their hijabs, with the dispute escalating into a diplomatic confrontation with Turkey. The New Azerbaijan Party accused Turkish political figures and media organisations of conducting a systematic campaign against Azerbaijan, arguing that religious solidarity did not entitle one Muslim-majority country to dictate another’s domestic policies.
President Ilham Aliyev’s administration condemned senior figures in President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s Justice and Development Party (AKP) on 13 October, and Oktay Saral, a senior adviser to Erdoğan, condemned the exclusion of girls wearing headscarves in a public statement on 12 October. Azerbaijan’s Interior Ministry reported that 37 people had been detained in Baku on 12 October for alleged disruption of public order, damage to property and obstruction of school activities, while activists claimed more than 200 people had been detained without independent confirmation.
Detentions and Calls
Amnesty International said mass arrests of peaceful protesters and the reported detention of a mother protesting her daughter’s exclusion from school, alongside the disappearance of an activist who aimed to help affected girls, reflected “the state’s violent suppression of the lawful exercise of the right to protest peacefully”. Amnesty International’s Eastern Europe and Central Asia Director Marie Struthers said, “Denying girls access to classrooms because they wear a hijab is discriminatory and violates their rights to education, and the freedoms of religion and expression.”
The BBC described protests beginning outside state schools in Baku and in southern districts including Masally and Jalilabad after the education ministry began enforcing new uniform rules that turned away female pupils wearing hijabs. The Interior ministry said it had detained 37 people on Monday who tried to obstruct the rules and “grossly violate public order,” while Shahiza Huseynova, a mother protesting outside a school in the Mashtaga district, was detained on Tuesday.
London Protest and Friday
A London demonstration organized by the Association of Students Activism for Palestine (ASAP) and its partners brought together activists from different faiths and backgrounds in solidarity with Muslim women and girls who wear the hijab.
“The hijab does not prevent anyone from getting an education.”
Islamic preacher Fadel Soliman condemned the ban, describing it as contrary to the teachings of Islam, while ASAP President Nusaiba Mohamed and student Osama Ghanem spoke at the protest calling on Azerbaijani authorities to respect freedom of belief and ensure female students were not prevented from pursuing education.
Protesters announced plans to return to the Azerbaijani embassy every Friday until further notice, continuing their campaign until the ban on the hijab in educational institutions is reversed.
In Azerbaijan, the BBC reported that in a video pupils outside School No. 69 in Balakhany held a banner reading: “The hijab does not prevent anyone from getting an education.”