Azerbaijan court restarts trial of independent media founder Imran Aliyev

Imran Aliyev

An Azerbaijani court has restarted the trial of independent journalist Imran Aliyev, who used the hearing to demand authorities unfreeze his family's bank accounts.

Aliyev, the head of the Meclis.info watchdog website, is facing multiple charges including smuggling and tax evasion in a case that local and international rights groups have condemned as politically motivated.

During the hearing at the Baku Grave Crimes Court on 7 July, the presiding judge, Roman Alakbarli, announced that the judicial panel had been reconstituted, requiring the trial process to begin anew.

Addressing the court, Aliyev requested the immediate removal of restrictions on his family's bank accounts, which he said had left his parents and sisters unable to access their funds for more than two years.

"For more than two years, my family members' bank transactions have been restricted," Aliyev said. Judge Alakbarli replied that a decision would be made after the matter was investigated.

The court partially granted requests by the defence, agreeing to summon three police officers and two independent search witnesses to testify about a disputed police search of Aliyev's home.

Defence lawyer Rasul Jafarov told the court that Aliyev rejected police assertions that $7,700 (£5,900) in cash was found during the raid.

"We believe there are contradictions in that search protocol," Jafarov said.

The defence also sought to summon Nasimi Huseynov, a tax expert who calculated the alleged tax debt, after a State Tax Service representative, Giyas Mammadov, was unable to explain the methodology to the court. The judge deferred this request until after the examination of court documents.

Two other activists, Elgiz Gahraman and Tamella Musayeva, are also on trial in the case. Both remain under police supervision.

Aliyev was arrested at Baku's Heydar Aliyev International Airport on 18 April 2024.

He and his co-defendants face eight charges, including money laundering and document forgery, which carry a maximum sentence of 12 years in prison.

The trial is scheduled to resume on 28 July.