By Nailia Bagirova and Lucy Papachristou BAKU (Reuters) -Post-mortems on two Azerbaijani brothers who died in Russian police custody have shown that they were beaten to death, authorities in the South Caucasus country said on Tuesday as tensions rose sharply between Moscow and Baku.

Two Russian state media staff were arrested in Azerbaijan on Monday accused of working for the FSB The deaths of two brothers in Russian custody have laid bare a diplomatic rift with Azerbaijan, as it challenges Moscow's dominant role in the South Caucasus and establishes itself as a regional power.

Holding the Russians off has become a game of whack-a-mole for outnumbered Ukrainian troops, with Russia frequently opening new lines of attack.

Vladimir Putin has been dealt a massive setback after more than 20,000 soldiers deserted the front line in the war against Ukraine - leaving Kremlin forces even more depleted. Courts have received 20,