Azerbaijan MFA updates data on citizens killed in Sea of Azov attack

Azerbaijan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs has clarified information about Azerbaijani citizens killed and injured in drone attacks on the cargo vessels Natra and Tsirkon in the Sea of Azov.

According to the ministry, 25 Azerbaijani citizens were on board the vessels. Four people were injured in the attacks. It was initially reported that four Azerbaijani citizens had been killed, but it later emerged that one of the people included in the list was a Russian citizen and was not of Azerbaijani origin.

“The bodies of Azerbaijani citizens Rajab Ahadov, born in 1976, and Muhammad Aliyev, born in 1997, have been found, and measures are being taken to repatriate their remains to our country. The vessel Tsirkon, where two other Azerbaijani citizens previously reported dead were located, remains at the site of the strike due to the risk of explosion. Russian rescue teams are taking safety measures to move the vessel to port. Accurate information about the fate of the two citizens can be provided only after the search operations are completed,” the Azerbaijani MFA said.

The ministry also reported that Samid Ibadzade, born in 1998, and Rashad Madatkhanov, who had been receiving treatment at the city hospital in Yeysk, have already been discharged.

The condition of Emin Valekhov, born in 2002, and Namig Jafarli, born in 1999, is assessed as good. They are expected to be discharged from the medical facility after completing treatment.

Employees of the Azerbaijani Embassy in Russia are currently at the scene and are providing necessary assistance to Azerbaijani citizens.

“All our citizens have been accommodated in a hotel in the city of Yeysk and are in contact with their families. Citizens who intend to return to Azerbaijan and have lost their documents have been provided with the relevant certificates for return,” the ministry added.

Earlier, Azerbaijan’s Foreign Ministry said that embassy employees in Russia had immediately traveled to the area following the drone attacks on cargo vessels in the Sea of Azov, which resulted in casualties among Azerbaijani citizens.