New facts have emerged about Azerbaijani citizens working in Russia being forcibly sent to the ongoing war in Ukraine, APA reports.
Azerbaijani citizen Tahir Rufullayev, born in 1980, was forcibly sent by the Russian side to the war in Ukraine in January of this year.
Tahir Rufullayev’s mother, Sonabayim Farziyeva, told APA that her son secretly called her on January 15 this year and said that he was being taken by Russia to the war in Ukraine.
“My son went to Russia to work two years ago”
“I am an elderly woman; when it rains, water leaks into my home from the roof. My son worked as a car mechanic in Bilasuvar. In order to improve our financial situation and repair the roof covering of the house, he went to Russia, to Voronezh, to work about two years ago.
My son had gone to Russia to work for three months. Later, the validity of his documents for staying there expired, and since he did not know the Russian language and it was not possible to fix his documents, he continued working informally. He had been living in Russia without documents for about two years,” she noted.
He was supposed to have a trial, but was sent to war
According to his mother, Tahir Rufullayev was detained by Russian police some time ago. He was told that either he would be sent to war within the ranks of the Russian army, or he would be sentenced to 20–25 years in prison: “They also threatened to arrest him on drug-related charges. However, my son is neither a drug user nor a smoker.
My son told me that the police officers who detained him receive a certain amount of money for each detained Azerbaijani. My son was subjected to physical pressure and torture there. He was held for about three months at the police station and in unknown locations. In the end, through torture and coercion, they sent him to the war.”
Sonabayim Farziyeva noted that the first court hearing, scheduled for December 22, 2025, did not take place: “The second court hearing was set for January 24, 2026. During that period, we expected that my son would either be imprisoned or deported. But on January 15, my son was forcibly sent to the war.”
“My son had called me secretly”
Sonabayim Farziyeva says she has no information about where exactly her son was sent: “In mid-month, he called me using the phone of a driver who was there. He said that there were also several Azerbaijanis in that place. He made a short video call—he couldn’t speak, he only gestured with his hand to show that he was being taken under torture. My last contact with my son was in mid-month. After that, I have been unable to get any news.
Regarding this matter, I am asking the state for help. Please, help me. My son is an Azerbaijani citizen, from the Bilasuvar district. He is married and has a daughter and a son. As a mother, I want my child to be brought back.”
It should be noted that reports regularly circulate about migrants working in Russia, including Azerbaijani citizens, being forcibly sent to the war in Ukraine.
APA most recently wrote that 20 Azerbaijani citizens had been involved in the war in Ukraine.
Moscow is illegally sending citizens of various countries to the war through different enticing methods, deception, threats, and other means, without any military preparation or training.
There is already information about many Azerbaijani citizens who were forcibly drawn into combat in the Russia–Ukraine war being killed or going missing.
Russia is taking advantage of the difficult situation migrants find themselves in and, through various means, sending them directly to their deaths.
