The region is located in the southernmost territories of Azerbaijan, and apart from Azerbaijanis, had a Talysh and Russian population. From 1918 to 1919, the region was the place for the Mughan clashes, between the newly formed Azerbaijani forces, backed by the Caucasian Army of Islam of the Ottoman Empire, and accompanied by the local Talysh volunteers, and the members of the Russian White movement, with the aid of the self-proclaimed Mughan Soviet Republic. The clashes resulted in an Azerbaijani–Talysh victory and Azerbaijani retook the region's control. The Bolsheviks invaded Azerbaijan in April 1920 and formed the Azerbaijani SSR. According to Mehman Suleymanov, the Muslim population of the region was agitated by the Soviet authorities' policies against the local traditions and customs.