Society | August 9, 2025 | Paris/Baku
An Azerbaijani couple says French police removed their two young children at Paris Charles de Gaulle Airport, preventing the family from returning home. The incident took place on August 6, just as the family was preparing to leave Europe permanently.
Parents Muhammad Guliyev and Gultaj Abdullayeva told Qafqazinfo they had been living for several years in Dortmund, Germany, but decided to return to Azerbaijan for good. When they transited through Paris, police approached them and took the children — a two-year-old and a six-month-old — into custody.
According to the couple, German authorities had previously issued a ban preventing the children from leaving Europe, citing allegations that the mother had abused one of them months earlier while he was hospitalized after surgery.
“Our second child was operated on right after birth and stayed in hospital for about a month. That’s when it began — doctors and nurses falsely accused me of harming my baby, even claiming I hit him, tied his mouth with a towel, and gave him ice water. None of this is true. We care deeply for our children,” Abdullayeva said.
The couple said Germany’s child welfare office, Jugendamt, became involved and initially barred the mother from leaving the hospital. A Turkish-speaking home visitor was later assigned to monitor the family, but relations were tense, and the parents allege she repeatedly found fault with their childcare.
Three days after the Paris incident, the parents still have not seen their children, who are now in a shelter. A court hearing in the coming days will decide whether the travel ban can be lifted.
The family has contacted Azerbaijan’s embassy in France, which confirmed they are aware of the case.
“A representative of the diplomatic mission said Germany prohibited the children from leaving Europe, and they are working on the matter,” the couple stated.
