Baku Court Sentences Two Opposition Bloggers In Absentia

A court in Baku has sentenced Gabil Mamedov, a blogger known for his harsh criticism of Azerbaijani authorities on social media, to 16 years in prison.

On July 30, the Baku Court on Grave Crimes found Mamedov, who resides abroad, guilty on 24 counts of the Azerbaijani Criminal Code. The charges included making public calls against the state, inciting mass riots, terrorism, fraud, and extortion with threats. Mamedov has rejected the charges, stating that he is being prosecuted for his critical online remarks.

Additionally, on July 28, another blogger living abroad, Imadeddin Alimanov, was sentenced to 7 years in prison by an Azerbaijani court. He was found guilty of "making public calls against the state."

Previously, the Prosecutor General's Office of Azerbaijan announced it had opened criminal cases against about a dozen bloggers living abroad who were critical of high-ranking officials and members of the Azerbaijani parliament. They were invited to Baku to testify, but none of the bloggers appeared before the prosecutor's office, claiming the criminal cases were politically motivated. It's also worth noting that some of these bloggers have used obscene language in their commentary.