40 suspects held over ‘terror plot’ to attack Eurovision Song Contest

Authorities said that 40 suspects had been arrested in the run-up to the contest on Saturday.

A number of weapons, including several kilos of explosives and dozens of guns and hand grenades, were also seized.

Targets for the attacks included the song contest venue in Baku, for which militants had obtained tickets, the National Security Ministry said.

“The armed group set itself the aim of mounting terrorist attacks in several regions of Azerbaijan, creating a mood of powerlessness and lawlessness, sowing panic, ethnic and religious enmity, disrupting the public peace and damaging Azerbaijan’s international image,” it said.

Weapons seized in raids against the alleged militants included 13 assault rifles, one machine gun, 12 handguns, three rifles, 3,400 rounds of bullets, 62 hand grenades, and several kilos of explosives.

The ministry did not say when the arrests took place, adding that the news was not revealed in the run-up to the event to prevent alarming visitors.

According to reports, the group had links to neighbouring Muslim republic Dagestan, which has been plagued by Islamist insurgent attacks.

Azerbaijan has revealed details of other terrorist activities planned by groups with ties to al-Qaeda and Iran in recent months, but this appears to be the most extravagant plot revealed to date.

The country has played an active role in western-led counter-terrorist programmes. That policy has placed a strain on its ties with neighbouring Iran.

The statement said other plots included plans for an assassination attempt on Azerbaijan president Ilham Aliyev in April, as well as attacks on religious pilgrimage sites and police stations.

The Eurovision attack would have centred on the Baku Crystal Hall, where the competition was held over the weekend, officials said. The militants would have also attacked Marriot and Hilton hotels in Baku.

At least one suspected plotter, 37-year-old Azerbaijani citizen Vugar Padarov, and a security agent were killed during raids to shut down the terrorist group.

Padarov was identified in April as the leader of a group that had received religious training in Syria. Some of its members had weapons training with the Jihad Islami group in Pakistan and took part in fighting Nato-led troops in Afghanistan, the National Security Ministry said.

In March, the ministry announced the arrests of 22 Azerbaijani citizens it said had been hired by Iran to stage terror attacks against the US and Israeli embassies as well as against western-linked groups and companies. It said they had been trained in Iran by the Revolutionary Guard.

Earlier this year, it announced the arrest of several other suspected terrorists allegedly working for Iran’s secret services.

The Eurovision Song Contest was held in the country amidst a war of words over human rights.

The Crystal Hall arena was built by a German firm in eight months for an undisclosed sum. But human rights groups said that some buildings in Baku were torn down with the contest in mind and claimed some residents were forcefully evicted, especially in areas around the Crystal Hall.