Political Prisoners

Elbai Karimli

Male

On August 28, 2023, Elbai Karimli was arrested for 4 months pending investigation. The term of detention pending investigation was subsequently extended several times.

Elbai Karimli died on December 12, 2025, while in state custody at Penitentiary Institution No. 2 in Azerbaijan, where he was serving a sentence in the medical unit. The official report claims he committed suicide by hanging, a conclusion still being investigated by the Khazar District Prosecutor's Office. However, human rights groups and political opponents challenge this account. They highlight the suspicious timing—his death fell on the anniversary of former President Heydar Aliyev’s passing, whose monument Karimli had defaced—and note his prolonged hunger strike since May 2025 as indications of possible state involvement. By March 2026, no public findings from the investigation have emerged, and Karimli’s case remains central to ongoing demands for judicial transparency and the safeguarding of political prisoners in Azerbaijan.

PFPA activist

Elchin Arif oglu Zeynalov

Male

Article 234.4.3 (Illegal acquisition or possession for the purpose of sale, manufacture, production, processing, transportation, transfer, or sale of narcotic drugs or psychotropic substances in large quantities) of the Criminal Code of the Republic of Azerbaijan. On March 16, 2023, Sumgayit resident Elchin Zeynalov was sentenced to four months of pretrial detention during the preliminary investigation. His pretrial detention was subsequently extended several times.

Ilkin Rajabov

member of the Muslim Unity Movement

Elchin Samad oglu Amiraslanov

Male

Gobustan Closed Prison

former head of the Gazakh District OMON (Special Purpose Police Unit)

Eldaniz Fatulla oglu Agayev

Male

Article 234.4.3 (Illegal acquisition or possession for the purpose of sale, manufacture, production, processing, transportation, shipment, or sale of narcotic drugs or psychotropic substances in large quantities) of the Criminal Code of the Republic of Azerbaijan. On March 10, 2023, Eldaniz Agayev was sentenced to four months of pretrial detention during the preliminary investigation. His pretrial detention was subsequently extended several times.

Colony No. 17 in the village of Bina in the Azizbekov district of Baku

a religious believer.

Eldar Alakbar oglu Jafarzade

Male

Article 234.4.3 (Illegal acquisition or possession for the purpose of sale, manufacture, production, processing, transportation, transfer, or sale of narcotic drugs or psychotropic substances in large quantities) of the Criminal Code of the Republic of Azerbaijan. On December 2, 2022, Eldar Jafarzade, a resident of Khirdalan, was sentenced to 4 months of pretrial detention during the preliminary investigation. His pretrial detention was subsequently extended several times.

Lankaran Penitentiary Complex

Samir Aliyev

a religious believer.

Elkhan Aliyev

Male

Arrested under Articles 178.3.2 (Fraud, i.e. taking possession of someone else's property or acquiring the right to someone else's property by deception or abuse of trust, committed with causing major damage), 320.1 (Forgery or illegal production of a certificate or other official document granting rights or exempting from obligations, for the purpose of using it or selling such a document) and 320.2 (Use of knowingly forged documents) of the Criminal Code of the Republic of Azerbaijan. On July 27, 2023, the Sabunchu District Court of Baku chose a preventive measure in the form of detention for a period of 3 months for Elkhan Aliyev. The term of detention under arrest during the investigation was subsequently extended.

Pre-trial detention center in Umbaki settlement in Garadagh district of Baku

Member of the PFPA

Elkhan Azimov

Male

Article 221.2.1 (Hooliganism, i.e., intentional actions that grossly violate public order, express clear disrespect for society, accompanied by the use of violence against individuals or the threat of violence, as well as the destruction or damage of another's property, committed by a group of individuals) of the Criminal Code of the Republic of Azerbaijan.

a resident of Imishli.

Elkhan Ismayilov

Male

Article 234.4.3 (Illegal acquisition or possession for the purpose of sale, manufacture, production, processing, transportation, transfer, or sale of narcotic drugs or psychotropic substances in large quantities) of the Criminal Code of the Republic of Azerbaijan.

Pretrial Detention Center No. 1 in the village of Kurdakhani in the Sabunchu District of Baku

member of the Muslim Unity Movement

Elkhan Matlab oglu Zamanov

Male

Article 234.4.3 (Illegal acquisition or possession for the purpose of sale, manufacture, production, processing, transportation, transfer, or sale of narcotic drugs or psychotropic substances in large quantities) of the Criminal Code of the Republic of Azerbaijan.

believer

Elman Ibrahimov

Male

Article 221.2.1 (Hooliganism, i.e., intentional actions that grossly violate public order, express clear disrespect for society, accompanied by the use of violence against individuals or the threat of violence, as well as the destruction or damage of another's property, committed by a group of individuals) of the Criminal Code of the Republic of Azerbaijan.

a resident of Imishli.