Secularism in Azerbaijan

Azerbaijan is a secular state by law. The Constitution states, "religious associations shall be separate from the state and shall not interfere in state affairs."

Background
Azerbaijan has an estimated population of approximately 10.4 million. Nearly 96 percent of the population is Muslim, out of which 65% is Shia and 35% is Sunni. The remaining four percent of the population consists of atheists, Armenian Apostolics, Baha’is, Catholics, Georgian Orthodox, members of the International Society for Krishna Consciousness, Jehovah's Witnesses, Jews, Molokans, Protestants, and Russian Orthodox.

Regulations on Muslims
According to the 2024 report from thr US Department of State, the government of Azerbaijan routinely harassed, fined, surveilled, detained, arrested, and imprisoned Shia Muslims related to their religious activities and religious activism. On December 29, 2023, the State Department placed Azerbaijan on its Special Watch List for severe vioations of religious freedom. The government uses mosque closures to repress independent Muslim groups that act independently of the state. Clerics that act in ways objectionable to the state face dismissal and arrest. The government does not restrict religious conversion, but it does forbid proselytizing. Azerbaijan is often considered the most secularized Muslim-majority nation.

Persecution of Armenian Christians
The recent invasion of Nagorno-Karabakh in 2023 lead to a large scale exodus of Armenian Christians to Armenia. Over 100 churches were reportedly destroyed. The Armenian government accused Azerbaijan of ethnic cleansing. In 2024, the US government added Azerbaijan to a watchlist of religious freedom following the Azerbaijani invasion of Armenian enclave.