Azerbaijani police beat activists contesting election results

TRUNCHEON-wielding police yesterday beat and tried to disperse opposition demonstrators protesting over disputed parliamentary elections in the former Soviet republic of Azerbaijan.

Some 15,000 opposition activists gathered in the capital, Baku, to protest against the outcome of the November 6 parliamentary elections which they claimed were rigged - the latest in a series of such opposition actions in recent weeks.

But unlike the previous rallies, the demonstrators tried to set up a permanent protest on a square in downtown Baku, triggering a swift police crackdown.