(MENAFN- AzerNews)
By Fuad Muxtar-Aqbabali
The treacherous and dishonorable attack on the Azerbaijani
embassy in London, and the disrespect for the national flag have
caused outrage both inside the country and among Azerbaijan's
friends abroad, who have shown solidarity with the people of
Azerbaijan.
'On August 4, 2022, the embassy of the Republic of Azerbaijan in
the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland was
attacked by a group of radical religious groups,' the Foreign
Ministry said.
Storming the embassy building, a group of vandals raised
religious flags and chanted radical religious slogans on the
balcony of the building. The Metropolitan police of London
intervened hours later and the group members were taken out of the
building and detained.
'In accordance with the Vienna Convention, through diplomatic
channels, the UK authorities were warned about the security of
diplomats and diplomatic premises,' the Foreign Ministry said in
the statement.
The heinous attack against the Azerbaijani embassy in London has
triggered tough reactions both inside the country and abroad.
Social media users reacted harshly to the incident and came up with
various scenarios as to who might be behind the move.
'I was appalled by yesterday's attack on the embassy of
Azerbaijan in London,' Head of the European Union (EU) Delegation
to Azerbaijan Peter Michalko tweeted.
'Violence against diplomatic missions and their personnel is
unacceptable. I am relieved that the embassy staff and their
families are safe,' he added.
Along with Turkey, one of the leading Central Asian nations of
Uzbekistan, with which Azerbaijan has recently bolstered all-out
relations, strongly condemned the attack on the Azerbaijani
embassy.
“The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Uzbekistan
strongly condemns the provocative attack on the embassy of the
Republic of Azerbaijan in the United Kingdom of Great Britain and
Northern Ireland on August 4, 2022,” the ministry said in a
statement.
“We consider absolutely unacceptable any actions that pose a
threat to the life and health of members of diplomatic
missions.
“We call for a comprehensive investigation into this incident
and bringing all those involved to justice,' the statement said,
adding that“Uzbekistan is expressing its support for brotherly
Azerbaijan in ensuring the security and protection of its citizens
abroad”.
In a similar vein, the Kazakh Foreign Ministry also denounced
the attack against the Azerbaijani embassy in London.
'In connection with the attack of extremists on the embassy of
the Republic of Azerbaijan in London on August 4 this year, we
consider unacceptable any manifestation of violence against
diplomatic missions and their personnel. Such acts of violation of
the foundations and norms of international law are subject to
universal condemnation and require a thorough investigation in
order to bring their organizers to justice. We are confident in the
resilience of the Azerbaijani people and express our readiness to
provide all possible support in difficult situations for the
fraternal state,' the ministry said.
Georgian Foreign Minister Ilia Darchiashvili also voiced
solidarity and support for Azerbaijan. This came out after
Azerbaijani Foreign Minister Jeyhun Bayramov tweeted to thank
Georgia for siding with Azerbaijan over the attack on the
embassy.
“Thankful to (my) colleague from Georgia Ilia Darchiashvili for
expressing solidarity and support over a phone conversation on the
unprecedented attack by radicals on the embassy of Azerbaijan in
London,” Bayramov tweeted.
The Georgian Foreign Ministry condemned the provocation against
the Azerbaijani embassy in London on August 4 and Georgian Foreign
Minister Ilia Darchiashvili called his Azerbaijani colleague Jeyhun
Bayramov and expressed his full support over the incident, the
report said.
The Spiritual Board of Azerbaijan, the religious body, did not
remain indifferent to the attack on the embassy and denounced the
UK-based radical group for the storming of the embassy.
'Azerbaijan strongly condemns the act of aggression committed
against the building of the embassy in the United Kingdom of Great
Britain and Northern Ireland with a sense of concern and considers
it a premeditated, politically motivated act of terrorism and
vandalism. This event is an act of provocation against the Republic
of Azerbaijan and international law in general. The fact that the
radical group The Mahdi Servants Union, which clearly abuses
religion, targets the sovereignty and attribute of independent
Azerbaijan - the national flag, and that the action is accompanied
by religious slogans and sectarian demands can be evaluated as
abuse of religion and a call to hatred,' the Spiritual Board
said.
Another similar move of condemnation came from the Organization
of Turkic States (OTS).
'We condemn the violent and unacceptable attack against the
Organization of Turkic States' founding member Azerbaijan's embassy
in London by radical religious groups. We call for a thorough
investigation of this act of vandalism,” reads the tweet.
Yesterday's unprovoked attack on the Azerbaijani embassy in the
UK by radicals is unacceptable, said an informal cross-party group
of MPs and Peers to encourage links between the UK parliament and
Azerbaijan (APPG).
'The APPG condemns the attack and is glad that staff at the
embassy were unharmed despite the very real threat to their safety.
Our thanks also to the police who dealt with the situation,' APPG
said in a tweet.
In the meantime, Azerbaijan summoned British chargé d'affaires
to express 'firm objection and demand firm guarantees', the
ministry said.
'It was brought to the attention of the other party that this
provocation seriously exposed the issue of ensuring the security of
the diplomatic mission and that the host country should take
security measures in accordance with its international legal
obligations. A guarantee was requested from the other side that
such situations would not be repeated.
In its turn, the British embassy in Azerbaijan reacted to the
incident.
“The UK condemns the actions of those protestors that entered
the embassy of Azerbaijan in London and a full investigation is
ongoing. The police safely evacuated the embassy staff inside the
building and then removed the protesters. Eight individuals have
been arrested. The UK takes seriously its commitment to guarantee
the protection of diplomatic missions in the UK and police are
engaging with the embassy of Azerbaijan to ensure appropriate
security measures are in place,” the statement read.
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