Anthony Bourdain is banned from Azerbaijan after visiting off-limits territory

Anthony Bourdain has supposedly been banned from Azerbaijan after having visited an area not permitted by their government. According to Condé Nast Traveler, the celebrity chef traveled from Azerbaijan to the disputed region of Nagorno-Karabakh. The Azerbaijani government forbids those seeking a visa to the country from visiting the region without consent from the foreign ministry.

On its website, the Embassy of the Republic of Azerbaijan strongly advises that “citizens and permanent residents of the United States avoid visiting the occupied territories of the Republic of Azerbaijan. The Nagorno-Karabakh region and seven adjacent districts of the Republic of Azerbaijan are currently under the illegal occupation by the Republic of Armenia. The illegal nature of this occupation is widely recognized by the international community, including the United Nations Security Council.”

The statement continues on to warn that anyone who disobeys this protocol will be deported.

https://twitter.com/Bourdain/status/921416408612986880Bourdain shared posts on social media while he was touring Azerbaijan, where he was allegedly shooting an episode for his CNN show Parts Unknown. A photo on Instagram shows a military helicopter with the caption “Cameraman Jerry Risius ponders our chosen means of transport (Russian MI-8 MTV-1),” and a tweet addressed to musician and political activist Serj Tankian reads, “Thanks @serjtankian for finally getting me to Armenia and making it awesome.”

https://www.instagram.com/p/BaX3UGDn1mC/The Daily Meal has reached out to CNN for comment, though Bourdain has already acknowledged the speculations on Twitter. On October 24, he “retweeted” an article by Armen Press whose opening sentence says, “Azerbaijan will officially blacklist American chef and TV show host Anthony Bourdain.”

Fair enough.

To learn more about more laws and regulations around the globe, here are 18 weird rules travelers should know.