Azerbaijani opposition leader Ali Karimli facing 'psychological pressure' in prison

Ali Karimli

Imprisoned Azerbaijani opposition leader Ali Karimli is being subjected to deliberate sleep deprivation and harsher jail conditions following a foreign media interview, his supporters say.

The Azerbaijani Popular Front Party (AXCP) said Mr Karimli, aged 61, was moved to a more restrictive cell and stripped of basic privileges after speaking to the French broadcaster France 24.

A defence committee representing the politician warned that authorities had "deliberately" placed a mentally ill inmate in his cell to keep him awake at night through loud, incoherent chanting.

"We are certain this situation was created intentionally," the committee said in a statement. "The goal, of course, is to break Ali Karimli's will through physical exhaustion."

During a family visit on 24 June, Mr Karimli told relatives that his new cell lacked a television and radio, and that wardens were blocking newspapers sent by his lawyers. He has also reportedly been denied his daily two-hour outdoor walk and had his phone call privileges revoked.

"The conditions in the chamber are so unbearable that I am suffering from insomnia," Mr Karimli was quoted as saying. "If these conditions continue for days, it could seriously damage my physical health."

He added that "no pressure or difficulty" would deter him from his political struggle.

Azerbaijan's prison service has not commented on the allegations, but authorities in Baku have consistently rejected accusations of mistreating political prisoners.

Mr Karimli and Mammed Ibrahim, a senior AXCP member, have been held since December 2025 on charges of attempting to forcibly overthrow the constitutional order. Both men deny the charges, which their lawyers and international watchdogs say are politically motivated.

In his France 24 interview, Mr Karimli described himself as a prisoner of conscience and accused European nations of turning a blind eye to domestic repression in exchange for Azerbaijani natural gas.

Human rights organisations, including Amnesty International, have repeatedly called for the release of political opposition figures and independent journalists in Azerbaijan, describing the ongoing crackdown as a campaign of systemic political repression.