Gedabek Gold Mine

6 Posts

•

0 Followers

An artificial lake used to drain acid from a goldmine near Soyudlu. Image via MeydanTV

Azerbaijan

Mining to be halted in Soyudlu after Aliyev threatens ‘provocateurs’

by Ismi Aghayev

•4 min read

Mining near Soyudlu village in western Azerbaijan will be halted, three weeks after protests that led to the village’s ongoing police lockdown. The announcement came a day after President Ilham Aliyev made his first public acknowledgement of the protests. Azerbaijan’s Minister of Ecology and Natural Resources, Mukhtar Babayev, on 12 July told local journalists that a ‘temporary suspension of operation’ had been agreed with the mining company. Babayev added that tests of air quality in the r

Police man a checkpoint at one of the entrances to the village of Soydlu. Image via Abzas.

Azerbaijan

Azerbaijan’s Soyudlu enters third week under police blockade

by Ismi Aghayev

•4 min read

The village of Soyudlu in western Azerbaijan remains locked down and closed to outsiders, over two weeks after police clashed with local people protesting against pollution. On 20–21 June, residents opposed to the dumping of waste from a nearby gold mine were confronted by riot police, who deployed tear gas and pepper spray, including at elderly residents. Local residents told OC Media that Soyudlu had remained closed to outsiders since, with police checkpoints set up at all entrances to

Residents of Soyudlu confront riot police at a protest against the nearby dumping of mine waste. Image via social media.

Azerbaijan

Podcast | Roadblocks and acid lakes: an Azerbaijani village under siege

by OC Media

•2 min read

The village of Soyudlu in western Azerbaijan was locked down by the police in late June after its residents protested environmental damage caused by a goldmine. The police’s response to the protests provoked outrage in Azerbaijan, with many activists criticising it for being disproportionate. This week, we spoke to Roya Malikzada a lawyer at Ecobill, an Azerbaijani environmental group that has been providing legal aid to people in Soyudlu, Elmaddin Shamilzade, a journalist

From left to right, activists Sanubar Heydarova, Narmin Shahmarzade, and Gulnara Mehdiyeva. Image via Abzas.

Azerbaijan

US Embassy security hand activists and journalist to Azerbaijani police

by Ismi Aghayev

•3 min read

Three feminist activists and one journalist were detained by security at the US Embassy in Baku and handed over to police after holding and live-streaming a peaceful protest against police brutality in Gadabay. The activists were attending an early Independence Day event at the US Embassy on 23 June. During the reception, Gulnara Mehdiyeva, Sanubar Heydarova, and Narmin Shahmarzade removed their scarves to reveal black hands drawn on their necks. They stood next to Azerbaijani MPs and ot

Clockwise from top left: Giyas Ibrahimov (Photo: Voice of America), Elmaddin Shamilzade (still from live broadcast), Elmir Abbasov (Photo: Facebook), Nargis Absalamova (left) and Nigar Mubariz (courtesy image)

Azerbaijan

Azerbaijani activists and journalist detained over mine protests

by Ismi Aghayev

•3 min read

One journalist has been detained, and three others forcibly removed from the village of Soyudlu in west Azerbaijan after covering the protests there. Two social activists were also detained after they made critical social media posts about the police response to the protests. Journalist Elmaddin Shamilzadeh was detained by police on Friday in Baku, while speaking to OC Media. On Tuesday and Wednesday, he published footage of local residents being violently dispersed by police in Soyudlu, afte

Azerbaijan

Azerbaijani police lock down village after environmental protests

by Ismi Aghayev

•4 min read

Entry and exit to the village of Soyudlu has been blocked since Wednesday, after riot police clashed with local people protesting environmental damage caused by a goldmine. Ten protesters were detained, while 15 were reportedly injured in confrontations with riot police. Two journalists are also reported to have been detained and had their phones confiscated while covering the protests on Thursday. On 20 June, over a hundred residents of the village of Soyudlu in the Gadabay District gathe