Al-Qaeda- linked armed group neutralized in Azerbaijan - UPDATE

A criminal group linked to Al Qaeda has been neutralized in Azerbaijan, the Public Relations' centre of the Ministry of National Security of Azerbaijan told Trend on Wednesday.

As a result of special operation conducted by the Ministry of National Security (MNS), an armed group which planned a series of sabotage and subversion and terrorist acts to disrupt social stability and creating panic among the population in Azerbaijan was neutralized.

It was found that in the summer of 2011 Azerbaijani citizen Vugar Padarov in order to prepare for the sabotage and subversion and terrorist acts created an armed group, supplied its members with firearms, ammunition, explosives, and other military equipment.

It was found that some members of the armed group previously with the help of representatives of the Al Qaeda international terrorist organization have undergone special religious and psychological training in schools-madrasas in Syria to participate in jihad. Then some members of the armed group arrived in the Pakistani province of Waziristan. After undergoing for a few months military and religious training within Islami-Jihad terrorist group, which is a member of the Al Qaeda international terrorist organization, they were trained to fire from various weapons, artillery and missiles, mortars, to create explosives and lay mines. Then these individuals as part of the Islami-jihad terrorist group participated in military operations against international anti-terrorist coalition forces in the provinces of Paktika and Paktia, Khost, Kandahar and Helmand in Afghanistan.

Other members of the group for two months underwent in Iran a special military and physical training, training in supervision, etc. An active member of the armed group Elmir Nuraliyev nicknamed "Maga" in August 2010 was in Dagestan, where he participated in terrorist acts and other criminal activities in the units of "Amir" of Abu Hurayrah, "Amirs of the Dagestani front" of Israpil Velidzhanov nicknamed "Hasan" and Ibrahimkhalil Daudov nicknamed "Saleh", who have links with Al Qaeda international terrorist organization.

At the end of that year Elmir Nuraliyev in the secret camp of detachment of Ibrahimkhalil Daudov located near Dagestani village of Kadar met with Vugar Padarov nicknamed "Busra". Padarov offered Elmir Nuraliyev to organize jihad in Azerbaijan.

/Trend/