Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, a staunch advocate of Muslim rights, has been notably silent on Azerbaijan’s recent hijab ban in schools. For years, Erdogan and Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev have shared a close alliance, but the ban is putting the Turkish president in a tight spot.
School uniform rules introduced in September in predominantly Muslim Azerbaijan, which is a secular state, have been used to bar pupils wearing the hijab. Teachers have also reported being excluded. The new rules do not explicitly mention hijabs, but prohibit clothing deemed incompatible with school uniforms or secular education.
