Trial Begins In Azerbaijani Mosque Bombing
Two people were killed in the bombing in August 2008.
July 07, 2009
BAKU -- The trial of 26 members of the so-called "Forest Brothers" has begun in an Azerbaijani court, RFE/RL's Azerbaijani Service reports.
The men are accused of involvement in the bombing of the Abu Bakr Mosque in Baku last year that killed two people and injured some 20 others, and also of conspiring against the state, terrorism, formation of an illegal armed group and illegal possession of weapons.
The defendants say the charges against them are fabricated and their lawyer, Muzaffar Bakhishov, said the prosecution has not offered any convincing evidence of his clients' guilt.
Relatives of some of the defendants told RFE/RL that investigators planted weapons in the homes of those currently on trial.