Iran attacks the greatest source of pride for Azerbaijanis

Iranian expert Ehsan Movahedian has described Tabriz-based Tractor Football Club as a serious threat to Iran’s national unity and territorial integrity.

He linked disputes among supporters of the Tabriz-based club to Pan-Turkism, accusing Türkiye and Azerbaijan of officially fueling the tensions.

According to Movahedian, Tractor could repeat the role once played by Dinamo Zagreb in Yugoslavia and create ethnic divisions within the country.

The expert even claimed that “Pan-Turkists” in Türkiye and Baku, as well as the United Kingdom and Israel, are behind the process, going so far as to make the absurd claim that a “Yugoslavia scenario” is being prepared for South Azerbaijan.

According to him, these forces have limited ability to influence the dangerous trend.

Once again, we are witnessing Tehran’s “sensitivity” toward the cultural identity of South Azerbaijan’s Turks.

Tractor FC is one of the main platforms through which Iranian Azerbaijanis express their mother tongue, cultural rights and ethnic pride. Chants heard at matches often concern cultural demands, but some circles in Iran cannot tolerate this and immediately portray them as “separatism” and foreign influence.

This is nothing more than an attempt to criminalize the legitimate rights-based demands of Iranian Azerbaijanis.

Jala Rovshan