Latest News & Updates

The European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) has requested formal explanations from the Azerbaijani government over the brief imprisonment of a man who criticised the country's public rights watchdog. Niyamaddin Aslanzade was handed a five-day administrative jail term in August 2021 for "minor hooliganism" after repeatedly calling the Ombudsman's office. According to reports by the US-funded broadcaster Radio Liberty, the Strasbourg court has now opened formal communications wit

Arif Hajili A prominent Azerbaijani opposition politician has been barred from leaving the country to attend international political conferences in Austria, his party has said. Arif Hajili, the assembly chairman and former leader of the opposition Musavat Party, was stopped by border officials at Baku's international airport on Tuesday, 23 June. He had been due to travel to Vienna for a regional security meeting, which was expected to be attended by both Azerbaijani governmen

Ali Karimli Supporters of detained Azerbaijani opposition leader Ali Karimli have accused prison authorities of intentionally subjecting him to psychological torture in an attempt to "break his will". The Defence Committee for the Rights of the Azerbaijani Popular Front Party (APFP) Chairman announced on social media that Mr Karimli, 61, is being systematically deprived of sleep in his cell. The committee said prison officials had placed Mr Karimli in a cell with an individua

Akif Qurbanov A Baku court has postponed the trial of 10 independent journalists and activists associated with the Toplum TV media outlet after the defence protested that they were denied access to the prosecution's closing arguments. The hearing at the Baku Grave Crimes Court on 22 June was rescheduled to 29 June to allow the defendants time to review the state's recommended sentences, which range up to 16 years in prison. The decision followed a sharp exchange between the p

Ilkin Baghirov A jailed Azerbaijani activist sentenced for allegedly plotting to set up an Islamic state has gone on a hunger strike to protest against his transfer to a high-security prison, according to his family. Ilkin Baghirov has refused food for three days following a decision to move him to the Umbaki Penitentiary Complex, a closed-regime facility near the capital, Baku. Journalist Arzu Abdulla reported the protest on 23 June, citing the activist's relatives. Baghirov

Samid Huseynov The family of Azerbaijani religious activist Samid Huseynov say they have not heard from him since he was summoned to a police station in Baku on 19 June. His wife, Arzu Huseynova, told Azadliq Radio—the Azerbaijani service of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty—that her husband has been missing for several days after being called to a station in Zabrat, a settlement in the capital. "He told me at around 10:00 that he was called to the police station in Zabrat and

The Institute for Human Rights has urged UN Human Rights Council to launch a joint coalition to counter state-backed violence against exiled activists. Diana Nazarets, an advocacy officer at the Institute for Human Rights, told the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) on Tuesday that authoritarian regimes were actively exploiting European territory to silence and intimidate critics. Speaking during an interactive dialogue in Geneva, Nazarets highlighted a series of rec

A court in Baku has sentenced eight Russian IT specialists to up to four years in prison on drug charges, amid ongoing diplomatic tensions between Azerbaijan and Russia. The Baku Grave Crimes Court on 19 June handed four-year sentences to Sergey Sofronov, Anton Drachev, Dmitry Bezugly, and Valery Dulov. Four other defendants – Dmitry Fedorov, Boris Timoshov, Aleksey Vasilchenko, and Ilya Bezugly – were sentenced to three years in prison. State prosecutors had previously sough

At least 25 Azerbaijani servicemen have died in non-combat circumstances during the first six months of 2026, according to a regional military monitoring group. The figures, compiled by the Caspian Defence Studies Institute (CDSI) and shared with the independent outlet Abzas Media, indicate that none of the registered deaths in the country's security and defence sectors were related to active conflict. The report comes amid ongoing concerns over safety conditions and non-comb

Azerbaijan plans to merge its two main media watchdogs into a single regulator with expanded powers to monitor online platforms and combat disinformation. The proposed legislative changes, discussed by parliament’s Human Rights Committee, will amend the country's media and civil service laws to establish a new Media and Broadcasting Council. The new body will absorb the roles of the Media Development Agency (MEDIA) and the Audiovisual Council, consolidating Azerbaijan’s regul

An international rights group has urged Azerbaijan to release jailed journalists who documented landmark environmental protests, marking the third anniversary of the demonstrations. Human Rights Solidarity (HRS) said a police blockade of Soyudlu village in western Azerbaijan remains in place three years after residents protested against toxic waste from a nearby gold mine. The advocacy group highlighted the case of Aytac Tapdig, also known as Aytac Ahmedova, a reporter for th

Akif Qurbanov An imprisoned Azerbaijani activist has appealed directly to President Ilham Aliyev from pre-trial detention, urging the leader to end the prosecutions of independent journalists and civil society workers. Akif Qurbanov, the head of the Institute for Democratic Initiatives (IDI) and a leading figure in the Third Republic Platform opposition group, challenged the president to hold him solely responsible for any alleged infractions rather than targeting subordinate

Nargiz Absalamova An Azerbaijani court has sentenced independent journalist Nargiz Absalamova to eight years in prison following a defiant final speech denouncing government corruption. Absalamova, 25, a reporter for the investigative outlet Abzas Media, has been held in pre-trial detention for 19 months. She is one of several journalists arrested in a sweeping crackdown on the country's independent press. In a bold address to the Baku court before her sentencing, she said th

Kamal Isayev An imprisoned critic of the Azerbaijani government has told a Baku court he never supported the creation of an independent Talysh state. Kamal Isayev, a prominent campaigner who has long criticised Baku’s policies towards ethnic minorities, made the remarks during a hearing at the Baku Grave Crimes Court on Thursday. State prosecutors accuse Isayev of using social media platforms to incite ethnic hatred and call for the partitioning of Azerbaijan's territory. The

Anar Arkivan An Azerbaijani court has sentenced opposition activist Anar Arkivan to 30 days in jail following a dispute with traffic police in the capital, Baku. Arkivan, a member of the organising committee of the Azerbaijan Popular Front Party (AXCP), was convicted of disobeying police orders, his party said. According to AXCP officials, Arkivan was stopped by traffic police on 16 June. Officers accused him of using his phone while driving, a claim he denied. Murad Sultanli

Namizad Safarov A prominent Azerbaijani lawyer and government critic has denounced fraud charges against him as "completely fabricated" during a court hearing in Baku on Thursday. Namizad Safarov, 72, who has been in custody since December, is accused of large-scale fraud for allegedly taking 53,000 Azerbaijani manats (£24,600) to secure a job for a woman. I do not even know this woman," Safarov told the Baku Grave Crimes Court. "There is no phone call, no correspondence to p

The European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) has ordered Azerbaijan to pay more than €104,000 (£88,000) to the family of an Armenian soldier tortured and killed in 2016. In a ruling published on Thursday, the Strasbourg-based court found that Azerbaijani soldiers had captured, tortured, and decapitated Major H.T. during the brief but intense four-day war over Nagorno-Karabakh in April 2016. The family of the 30-year-old major, who served in the armed forces of the unrecognised "

The International Press Institute (IPI) and International Media Support (IMS) have awarded their 2026 Free Media Pioneer award to exiled Azerbaijani outlets Meydan TV and AbzasMedia. The joint prize, which also went to the Latin American Center for Investigative Journalism (CLIP), recognises media organisations that bypass censorship to promote independent reporting. Eleven outlets were nominated. Both Azerbaijani winners have been forced to operate from abroad following a sw

Ali Karimli The jailed leader of Azerbaijan’s main opposition party says prison authorities have banned him from calling his family after he gave interviews criticising the government to international media. Ali Karimli, the head of the Azerbaijan Popular Front Party (AXCP), made the allegations during an appeal court hearing in Baku on 16 June. His family and party colleagues said he has been denied his twice-weekly phone call rights consecutively. Although my detention cond

Human rights group Amnesty International has launched a global campaign urging Azerbaijan’s President Ilham Aliyev to provide urgent medical care to jailed journalist Nargiz Absalamova. Absalamova, a reporter for the independent investigative outlet AbzasMedia, is serving an eight-year prison sentence at the Lankaran Penitentiary Complex. Amnesty said she has been denied an MRI scan and essential medical checks for four months to treat worsening sinusitis, which has left her