Category: Azer News

Azerbaijan’s freestyle wrestling team has started a training camp at the Azerbaijan Wrestling Federation’s (AGF) training base ahead of the 2026 Galaxy U-23 Wrestling World Championships.

The camp, which will continue until September 19, focuses on general and specific physical preparation. The team is training under coaches Teymuraz Kokoyev and Arif Abdullayev.

The 57-kilogram group includes Muhammad Ismayilov, Huseyn Rzazade and Ibrahim Hasanov. Jeykhun Allahverdiyev will compete at 61 kilograms, while Musa Aghayev, Huseyn Huseynov and Aykhan Abdullazade are in the 65-kilogram category.

Ramik Heybatov and Haji Karimov are training at 70 kilograms, while Aganazar Novruzov and Nihad Abbasov are in the 74-kilogram division.

Eljan Ismayilzade and Elkhan Garayev will compete at 79 kilograms, with Sabuhy Amiraslanov at 86 kilograms. Tabriz Bayramov and Anar Jafarli are in the 92-kilogram category, while Said Pashayev and Zafar Aliyev will compete at 97 kilograms.

The heavyweight group consists of Khetag Karsanov, Mukhamad Gantemirov and Yusif Dursunov in the 125-kilogram division.

The training camp is part of the team’s preparations for the U-23 World Championships, which will be held in Las Vegas, United States, from October 12 to 18.

The championship will feature men’s freestyle, Greco-Roman and women’s wrestling competitions. The freestyle events will be held from October 16 to 18 across 10 weight categories, ranging from 57 to 125 kilograms.

The third volume of the “Explanatory-Encyclopedic Dictionary of Nasimi’s Works in His Native Language” has been published.

The dictionary was compiled by Khadija Heydarova, head of the Department of History of the Azerbaijani Language at the Institute of Linguistics named after Nasimi of the Azerbaijan National Academy of Sciences (ANAS).

The publication is a major lexicographical study that systematically examines the lexical, semantic, terminological and cultural-historical foundations of works written by Imadaddin Nasimi in Azerbaijani Turkish.

The dictionary explains words and expressions used by the poet not only through their dictionary meanings but also by taking into account the shades of meaning they acquired in classical texts, as well as their figurative, symbolic and terminological functions.

One of the publication’s important scholarly features is that it reveals the broad lexical-semantic system of Nasimi’s language. Alongside commonly used vocabulary of classical Azerbaijani literary language, the dictionary examines the meanings of religious and philosophical terms, Sufi and Hurufi concepts, Quranic vocabulary, literary and poetic expressions, and terminology from various fields of knowledge.

The volume also examines semantic processes reflected in Nasimi’s works, including polysemy, the expansion and narrowing of meaning, metaphorization, symbolization and terminologization.

The dictionary is therefore valuable not only for the study of Nasimi’s language but also for research into the historical lexicology, historical semantics, lexicography and terminology of the Azerbaijani language. The material presented in the publication provides researchers with a rich source for tracing the historical development of Azerbaijani literary language, changes in the meanings of words over the centuries and the expressive possibilities of classical Azerbaijani Turkish.

The publication’s editor-in-chief is Doctor of Philological Sciences, Professor Nadir Mammadli. Its scientific editor is Academician Mohsun Nagisoylu, while the scientific adviser is Doctor of Philosophy in Philology Elnur Heydarov.

The reviewers are Doctors of Philological Sciences and Professors Sevil Mehdiyeva and Ismayil Mammadli, as well as Doctor of Philosophy in Philology, Associate Professor Teyyub Guliyev.

The first volume was published in 2025, the second in early 2026, and the third in August 2026. The publication of the third volume marks another stage in the scholarly documentation of the lexical and semantic system of Nasimi’s works written in Azerbaijani.

The third volume was published by a decision of the Scientific Council of the Institute of Linguistics named after Nasimi of ANAS at its meeting on October 23, 2025.

Few journalists in the 20th century had a career as unusual as Israel Epstein: born to Jewish parents in Warsaw, raised in China, a committed Communist, a member of the Chinese Communist Party and eventually one of the country’s most prominent foreign-born political figures.

Epstein was born in 1915 in Warsaw and arrived in China with his family when he was just two years old. He grew up in Tianjin and began working as a journalist while still a teenager. During the Second Sino-Japanese War, he reported on China and developed close ties with the Chinese Communist movement.

His relationship with the Communist Party deepened after he visited the Communist base at Yan’an, where he reported on Mao Zedong’s movement. Chinese state records later described Epstein as a foreign-born Communist who helped bring the party’s message to the English-speaking world.

Epstein eventually became one of the rare foreign-born members of the Chinese Communist Party. He obtained Chinese citizenship in 1957 and formally joined the CCP in 1964. He later became a member of the Standing Committee of the National Committee of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference.

His work also put him unusually close to Mao’s political project. In the early 1960s, Epstein was part of a team of Chinese and foreign scholars working on English translations and revisions of Mao Zedong’s Selected Works. The group included several foreign-born Jewish intellectuals who had committed themselves to the Chinese Communist cause.

But Epstein’s loyalty to the Communist system did not protect him from the Cultural Revolution.

In 1968, during Mao’s campaign of political purges, Epstein was arrested on allegations of plotting against Premier Zhou Enlai. He spent several years imprisoned before being released in 1973. According to biographical accounts, Zhou later apologized to him, and Epstein’s political privileges were restored.

What makes Epstein’s story particularly striking is that imprisonment did not lead him to abandon communism. Academic research into his life describes him as a fervent supporter and defender of the Cultural Revolution even after experiencing its repression personally.

He remained in China for the rest of his life, continuing to write and participate in political and cultural institutions. In 2005, Chinese President Hu Jintao personally visited him shortly before his death in Beijing at the age of 90. Epstein was buried at the Babaoshan Revolutionary Cemetery, traditionally reserved for prominent figures of the Chinese Communist revolution.

The paradox of Israel Epstein is what makes his life so remarkable: a Jewish child born in Warsaw became a Chinese journalist, a Communist Party member, a translator of Mao, a political prisoner during Mao’s own Cultural Revolution – and, after surviving that imprisonment, remained a committed Communist until his death.

Another Azerbaijani judoka has won a gold medal at the European Judo Championships Juniors Podgorica 2026, Montenegro.

Suleyman Shukurov, competing in the 90-kilogram weight category, defeated Germany’s Konstantin Distel by ippon to become European champion for the second time in his career.

Davud Namazli (100 kg) and Ramazan Ahmadov (+100 kg) finished the competition with bronze medals.

With these results, Azerbaijan’s judokas have won a total of five medals at the European Judo Championships Juniors Podgorica 2026.

Earlier, Aykhan Mirzazada (60 kg) and Mahammad Musayev (66 kg) claimed European titles.

A total of 400 judokas from 44 countries, including 222 men and 178 women, competed at the championships.

Azerbaijan is represented by 14 judokas, including nine men and five women across 10 weight categories.

Founded in 1972, the Azerbaijan Judo Federation actively promotes this martial art worldwide.

The President of the Azerbaijan Judo Federation is Rashad Nabiyev, who also serves as the Minister of Digital Development and Transportation.

The country’s modern judo history was laid by Mehman Azizov, who won a silver medal at the Old World Championship in 1998.

A year later, the winner of the World Youth Games in Moscow, Rasul Salimov, grabbed the bronze medal at the European Championship in Slovakia. Another national judoka, Elchin Ismayilov, became the European champion in 2000 in Wroclaw.

However, the achievements of Azerbaijani judo fighters did not stop there. Elnur Mammadli was named the best at the 2008 Beijing Olympics in the 73 kg division.

The list of the country’s top judo fighters includes Hidayat Heydarov, Zelym Kotsoiev, Zelim Tckaev, Balabay Aghayev, Ushangi Kokauri, Gultaj Mammadaliyeva, Leyla Aliyeva, Fidan Alizade, Aisha Gurbanli, etc.

Representatives of the Van Chamber of Commerce and Industry (Van TSO) and the Union of Manufacturers and Businessmen of Armenia (UMBA) have described their meetings in Yerevan on September 3-4, 2026, as an important step toward normalizing Turkiye-Armenia relations and strengthening economic cooperation.

The assessment was made in a joint statement issued by Van TSO and UMBA.

As part of a program attended by nearly 80 businesspeople from Van TSO, Turkish representatives held meetings with members of Armenia’s business community to discuss opportunities for expanding bilateral trade and investment, as well as ways to deepen cooperation between the business sectors of the two countries.

The statement emphasized that the business community can make an important contribution to developing relations based on mutual understanding, trust and shared economic interests, regardless of political differences and borders.

The sides stressed the importance of increasing trade between Turkiye and Armenia, opening border crossings and facilitating transit, developing transport links, and expanding reciprocal business visits and business-to-business (B2B) meetings.

They also proposed strengthening cooperation in tourism, logistics, agriculture, food, textiles, industry and services, while exploring opportunities for joint investment and production.

The statement noted that opening border crossings would not only facilitate commercial transit but would also represent an important step toward normalization by increasing contacts between the peoples of the two countries, strengthening economic ties and building mutual trust.

Van TSO and Armenian business representatives said Van has the potential to serve as a natural trade and logistics bridge between Turkiye and the South Caucasus. In their view, stronger economic ties between Van and Yerevan could contribute to regional trade and promote greater mutual understanding between communities.

The sides underscored the importance of continuing the contacts through reciprocal visits, expanded trade relations and concrete business partnerships, as well as opening border crossings and establishing regular commercial transit.

The joint statement described greater engagement between the business communities as a constructive initiative capable of making a socioeconomic contribution to the normalization of Turkiye-Armenia relations and supporting regional peace and prosperity in the South Caucasus.

A parliamentary delegation led by Speaker of Azerbaijan’s Milli Majlis Sahiba Gafarova has arrived in the United States for a working visit.

The Milli Majlis Press and Public Relations Department reported that the delegation arrived at New York International Airport, where it was welcomed by Azerbaijan’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations Tofig Musayev and other officials.

The delegation is expected to hold meetings as part of its working visit to the United States.

Iranian Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf said on Sunday that the “era of proportionate responses” to American attacks is “over” and vowed a “faster, heavier and more painful” response to any future violations of Iran’s security.

“The Americans must have understood that the era of ‘proportionate responses’ is over and that our strikes on the aggressor bases in recent operations were only the beginning. If they haven’t understood by now, they should understand before it’s too late that the rules of the game have changed and that from now on, any violation of Iran’s interests and security will receive a ‘faster, heavier, and more painful’ response,” Ghalibaf stated.

The comments come after another night in which the two sides exchanged attacks.

Ukraine has received three batches of energy assistance from Azerbaijan over the past two weeks, totaling 36.55 tonnes of high-voltage cables, according to Ukraine’s Ministry of Energy.

‘Over the past two weeks, Ukrainian communities have received three batches of energy assistance from our reliable partners in Azerbaijan. In total, 36.55 tons of high-voltage cables have been delivered to the energy sector workers of the Kyiv region,’ the ministry said in a statement on X.

According to the ministry, the equipment will be used by energy workers in the Kyiv region to carry out necessary repairs and help ensure reliable electricity supplies across the region.

The Ukrainian Ministry of Energy expressed gratitude to Azerbaijan for its continued support of Ukraine’s energy sector.

The assistance comes as Ukraine continues efforts to restore and strengthen its energy infrastructure amid ongoing challenges to the country’s power system.

United States President Donald Trump on Sunday called for voter ID and proof of citizenship requirements in elections, arguing that “Dumocrats [Democrats] CHEAT.”

Trump wrote the comment on his Truth Social profile, asking why the Democrats won’t approve the identification of voters. The passage of the SAVE Act has been one of Trump’s main goals during this term, as he has warned that there will be no more Republican presidents if the Senate keeps rejecting the legislation.

Back in June, Trump said that “anybody who doesn’t want to Terminate the Filibuster is a FOOL, a very stupid one, at that!” He argued that the “Dumocrats” will end the filibuster “within minutes of taking office” and pass many anti-Republican measures, including destroying “‘Popular’ Vote Landslides, and so much else.”

“The Republican Party will never win another Election … The Republican Party isn’t at stake, our Country is,” Trump said, warning that Senate majority leader John Thune will go down on the wrong side of history. “TERMINATE THE FILIBUSTER, AND IMMEDIATELY APPROVE THE SAVE AMERICA ACT. GOD BLESS THE U.S.A,” he concluded.

On September 5, a mine explosion occurred in the area of Chamanli and Sarijali villages in the Azerbaijan’s Aghdam district, which was liberated from occupation.

This was stated in a joint statement by the press services of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Republic of Azerbaijan, the Prosecutor General’s Office, and the Azerbaijan Mine Action Agency (ANAMA).

According to the statement, a tractor driven by 1972-born Elmadr Khan oglu Sariyev, a resident of Shotlanli village in the Aghjabadi district, struck a mine in an uncleared area. As a result of the incident, Elmadr Sariev sustained injuries.

An investigation into the incident is being conducted by the Aghdam District Prosecutor’s Office.

‘The Mine Action Agency, the Ministry of Internal Affairs and the Prosecutor General’s Office of the Republic of Azerbaijan once again call on citizens to comply with safety rules, pay attention to mine hazard signs, avoid entering unfamiliar areas, and stay away from territories where fencing works are being carried out,’ the statement said.

00:08 (GMT+4) A tractor hit a mine in the Aghdam district.

The incident occurred in the territory of Sarijali village.

According to reports, the tractor driver was plowing the land in the area when the tractor ran over an anti-tank mine. As a result of the explosion, the tractor was damaged beyond repair.

The tractor driver was not injured in the incident.

Currently, relevant authorities are conducting an investigation at the scene.