School Dress Restrictions in Azerbaijan Strain Baku-Ankara Ties
New dress code rules in Azerbaijan’s schools have become a source of tension in relations between Baku and Ankara, following reports that hijab-wearing students were barred from entry and female teachers came under pressure.
According to reports, Azerbaijan’s government issued Decree No. 309 on Sept. 21, 2026, setting out a new framework for school uniforms. The decree bans clothing that would “disrupt the uniformity of the school uniform or conflict with the principle of secularism,” although it does not specifically mention the hijab.
Enforcement of the rules in some schools reportedly prevented a number of hijab-wearing girls from entering. Published images from the city of Sumqayit showed schoolgirls standing outside the school in tears and confusion.
A few days later, Decree No. 325 imposed similar restrictions on teachers. Media reports said some hijab-wearing female teachers were barred from teaching or pressured to change their clothing.
The issue triggered widespread reaction in Turkey, with conservative media, secular newspapers and several Turkish opposition figures criticising the Baku regulations. The newspaper Sozcu called the move a “ban on the hijab in the brother country,” Karar reported that schoolgirls had been prevented from entering, and Milli Gazete described it as “oppression in Azerbaijan.”
Some analysts in Turkey have compared the new restrictions with the country’s Feb. 28, 1997 crisis, a period when thousands of hijab-wearing women were barred from universities and educational institutions, and “persuasion rooms” became a symbol of pressure on women.
Turkey’s Association for the Freedom of Thought and the Right to Education also staged a rally on Oct. 3 outside Azerbaijan’s consulate in Istanbul. Protesters chanted slogans including “No to the hijab ban in the Republic of Azerbaijan” and “Do not let Feb. 28 reach Azerbaijan.”
In response, Azerbaijan’s ruling party accused media outlets and political circles close to the Turkish government of launching an “organised disinformation campaign” against the country’s institutions and Ilham Aliyev. The party said Azerbaijan is a secular state whose constitution guarantees freedom of belief, and that its education regulations are based on equality and the rule of law.
Baku urged Ankara to show restraint on the issue and warned that continued criticism could damage bilateral ties. Turkey and Azerbaijan have close relations in security, energy and regional cooperation, and rising tensions between them could affect their interactions in the South Caucasus.
