Shia Imam Sardar Babayev detained on October 19 in Azerbaijan has been charged with treason, local media reveal.

His lawyer Javad Javadov revealed on Thursday, October 21 that the Sabail District Court of Baku decided to arrest the cleric for a period of 4 months, Turan reports.

Azerbaijan’s State Security Service detained several Shiite clerics, including Babaev, as tensions with its southern neighbor Iran continue to fester, Eurasianet.org said. The clerics and their families themselves reported their detentions. All detainees studied in Iran and are considered pro-Iranian religious leaders

Tension between Tehran and Baku was sparked in early September after Azerbaijani police began stopping and inspecting Iranian trucks carrying goods to Karabakh via Armenia. Police also arrested two Iranian drivers, drawing protests from Tehran.

Iran then held unprecedented war games on its border with Azerbaijan and the two sides exchanged harsh mutual recriminations. Azerbaijan shut down the representative office in Baku of Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.