As we reported, another provocation was committed against Azerbaijan and Turkey at the European Weightlifting Championship held in Yerevan, the capital of Armenia, by hanging torn Azerbaijani flag. The same provocation was carried out with the Turkish flag. A few days before that, the Azerbaijani flag was burned at the opening ceremony of the European Weightlifting Championship in Yerevan.
In his statement to Ednews, Umud Mirzayev, president of the International Eurasia Press Fund, said that Armenia's provocation was noticeably condemned in the world media.
International organizations have also stepped up to respond to this issue. IEPF and other NGO agencies, including our local media, immediately were stepping up to respond to the issue. We strongly condemn Armenia for this provocation. This action shows the Armenian barbarism. But they don't want to accept it. They aim to show Azerbaijan as an aggressor to the world and put it in a difficult situation in the international world. Armenian revanchists want to show that the situation is not stable. Azerbaijan has repeatedly given them its worthy response.
The mentioned provocation was also covered in the world media:
The Associated Press (AP) is an international news agency based in New York, USA.
Azerbaijan weightlifters leave Armenia after flag burned
Azerbaijan withdrew from the European Weightlifting Championships on Saturday in the capital of Armenia a day after a man ran onto the stage at the competition’s opening ceremony, seized an Azerbaijan flag and set it on fire.
Azerbaijan’s Ministry of Youth and Sports said the incident Friday night in Yerevan showed that “when such an atmosphere of hatred reigns in Armenia, security is not ensured, the normal participation of Azerbaijani athletes in competitions is impossible due to psychological pressure.”
The ministry said the athletes and those accompanying them have left Armenia.
Armenian officials said the man who seized the flag was an employee of Armenian public television who was invited to the opening ceremony. He was taken to a police station after the incident but freed without charges.
Animosity between Armenia and Azerbaijan has risen in recent months with the blockade of the only road leading from Armenia to the ethnically Armenian region of Nagorno-Karabakh within Azerbaijan.
Nagorno-Karabakh and adjacent territories came under the control of ethnic Armenian forces backed by Yerevan in 1994, but a six-week war in 2020 returned much of the area to Azerbaijan’s control.
Reuters is an international news agency based in London, England.
Azerbaijan protests 'barbaric' flag-burning at weightlifting championship in Armenia
Azerbaijan lodged a strong protest on Saturday after its national flag was grabbed and set on fire during the opening ceremony of a weightlifting championship in neighbouring Armenia. Azerbaijan said it had become impossible for its athletes to take part in the championships and they had already left Armenia to travel home via Georgia.
Video of the incident showed a man snatching the flag and setting it alight, prompting an angry joint statement by Azerbaijan's youth and sports ministry and its National Olympic Committee. They condemned it as a "barbaric act" and as evidence of ethnic hatred and racism, saying Armenia was unfit to ensure the safety of athletes and host international sporting events. Armenia rejected that criticism, saying the incident had been resolved quickly and without any danger to competitors at the European Weightlifting Championships.
Euronews is an international news agency based in Lyon, France
Azerbaijan weightlifters leave Armenia after flag burned
Azerbaijan withdrew from the European Weightlifting Championships on Saturday in the capital of Armenia a day after a man ran onto the stage at the competition's opening ceremony, seized an Azerbaijan flag and set it on fire. Azerbaijan's Ministry of Youth and Sports said the athletes and those accompanying them have left Armenia. Armenian officials said the man who seized the flag was an employee of Armenian public television who was invited to the opening ceremony. He was taken to a police station after the incident but freed without charges. Animosity between Armenia and Azerbaijan has risen in recent months with the blockade of the only road leading from Armenia to the ethnically Armenian region of Nagorno-Karabakh within Azerbaijan. Nagorno-Karabakh and adjacent territories came under the control of ethnic Armenian forces backed by Yerevan in 1994, but a six-week war in 2020 returned much of the area to Azerbaijan's control.
National Post - Canada's English-language newspaper also published Reuters' material.
Aljazeera
New tension between Armenia and Azerbaijan
Azerbaijan says it has withdrawn its athletes from the European Weightlifting Championships hosted in the capital of rival Armenia after a flag-burning incident during the opening ceremony. Azerbaijan said it had become impossible for its athletes to take part in the championships and they had already left Armenia to travel home via Georgia. Video of the incident on Saturday showed a man snatching the flag and setting it alight, prompting an angry joint statement by Azerbaijan’s youth and sports ministry and its National Olympic Committee. They condemned it as a “barbaric act” and as evidence of ethnic hatred and racism, saying Armenia was unfit to ensure the safety of athletes and host international sporting events. “In conditions when such an atmosphere of hatred prevails in Armenia, security is not ensured, the normal participation of Azerbaijani athletes in competitions is impossible due to the psychological pressure,” the statement said. “Politicising sport is absolutely unacceptable,” it added, urging the European Weightlifting Federation to impose sanctions on Armenia. Armenia rejected that criticism, saying the incident had been resolved quickly and without any danger to competitors at the championships. Russia’s RIA Novosti news agency said Armenian police briefly detained the man responsible and quoted his lawyers as saying he was released without charge.
Al-Arabiya
Joint approval of the Ministry of Youth and Sports of Azerbaijan and the National Olympic Committee
The statement noted that the Armenian public appreciated the incident and characterized the person who burned the flag as a "hero". This issue is an example of scandalous racism and anti-Azerbaijaniism in Armenia. This tension occurred after two Azerbaijani soldiers went missing a few days ago and were subjected to violence and torture after being detained by Armenia, and the Azerbaijan Foreign Ministry strongly condemned this. Press Secretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Aykhan Hajizadeh: "Such violent treatment is against international humanitarian law and is completely unacceptable and should be condemned at the international level. The Ministry of Defense of Azerbaijan announced some time ago that images of two army soldiers being detained and tortured in Armenia were circulated on social networks.
Al-Nahar (Lebanon)
For many years, Azerbaijan and Armenia have been waging an armed conflict over the control of Nagorno-Karabakh, the territory of Azerbaijan where Armenians are the majority. The last war between the two countries took place in 2020 and ended with the signing of a "fragile" ceasefire brokered (under the auspices) of Russia. There are still sporadic clashes on the border. According to the local media, the Armenian police briefly detained the designer Aram Nikolian, who was suspected of burning the Azerbaijani flag at the championship, and according to his lawyer, he was released without any charges. In turn, the Ministry of Education, Science, Culture and Sports of Armenia has made a statement and denied the existence of any risky situation for the athletes participating in the tournament. The ministry added that "the incident that happened during the opening ceremony and was eliminated in a very short time has nothing to do with guaranteeing the safety of the athletes."
Oghuz, Ulviyya Shahin
