New school dress rules in majority-Shiite Azerbaijan have led to crying pupils, class boycotts, and 37 arrests, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's adviser called the hijab a religious duty, Baku rejected the interference, and Israel's close ties with the country face criticism, Israeli newspaper Ynet reports.
“Azerbaijan's government on Tuesday defended its decision to enforce strict school uniform regulations that have sparked protests over restrictions on Islamic headscarves, and demanded that its close ally Turkey refrain from interfering in its internal affairs after Ankara criticized the measures.
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Videos circulated on Azerbaijani social media showed students embracing their teachers and crying after learning that the teachers were no longer allowed to enter school because of their headscarves. Female students who had been denied admission, or who were protesting restrictions imposed on others, were also filmed crying and holding protest signs. Students at at least two schools boycotted classes in protest against the restrictions.
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The hijab controversy has also triggered a diplomatic confrontation between Azerbaijan and its traditional ally Turkey.
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The dispute now threatens to cast a shadow over relations between the two countries, illustrating the challenges facing Baku as it seeks to enforce secularism in a predominantly Muslim society.
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Azerbaijan, like neighboring Iran, has a predominantly Shiite Muslim population. Unlike the government in Tehran, however, Baku maintains warm and extensive relations with Israel.
Those ties are rooted primarily in deep security cooperation, with Israel serving as a major weapons supplier to Azerbaijan's military. The two countries also share significant economic interests, particularly Israel's imports of Azerbaijani oil.
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Azerbaijan's close relationship with Israel frequently draws sharp criticism from parts of the Muslim world, particularly neighboring Iran, but occasionally also Turkey," Ynet writes, in particular.