Baku incites domestic clashes before a potential war against Armenia: Yeni Safak

Azerbaijan is adding fuel to tensions at home before a potential war against Armenia, according to an article by Turkish daily Yeni Safak.

"The Azerbaijani government officials state that if the talks over the settlement of the Karabakh conflict bear no fruit, Baku will resolve it through the use of military force. Despite the probability of the resumption of the war against Armenia, the Azerbaijani authorities, instead of securing stability at home and preserving it, are inciting domestic clashes and tensions, which is simply incomprehensible," read the article.

It comes after 100 people were arrested recently as they protested outside the Ministry of Education in Baku against the decision that imposed a ban on wearing headscarves at schools in Azerbaijan.

"Following the ban on the azan [the Muslim call to ritual prayer] at the mosques, now the headscarf is banned at educational institutions," reads the article, adding that about 2,000 people had gathered in protest.

Speaking to the paper, MP Panakh Huseynov said that by doing so, Azerbaijan attempts to show to the West that it is the most secular country in the Muslim world.

"And with that step the [Azerbaijani] authorities want to get the backing of the West," said Huseynov.

"The number of believers in Azerbaijan is increasing gradually, and the society is being religionized very fast. Any display of disrespect for religious symbols will unite the nation around those symbols," he added.