Jailed Azerbaijani activist ends hunger strike over health fears

Ramil Babayev

An imprisoned Azerbaijani activist has ended a 10-day hunger strike after suffering severe health complications and receiving pledges from prison authorities to end inmate abuse.

Ramil Babayev, an associate of the independent Institute for Democratic Initiatives (IDI), announced the end of his strike in a letter released through his family on 4 June.

Mr Babayev, who is being held in the Baku Detention Centre, said his physical condition had deteriorated rapidly. He reported vomiting blood, developing full-body rashes, and suffering from a stomach ulcer that had failed to heal after a previous dry hunger strike.

He said he was also persuaded to stop the protest because several of his jailed colleagues, including IDI head Akif Qurbanov, had begun hunger strikes in solidarity.

I did not have the moral right to risk the health of other people for the sake of continuing my protest," Mr Babayev said in his statement.

He added that he was deeply moved by a letter from an exiled friend who urged him to preserve his life, writing: "Our struggle cannot be built on death... Live so that the struggle lives."

Mr Babayev restarted his hunger strike on 25 May, having briefly paused an earlier protest in April. He said he resumed the action after witnessing the centre's deputy chief, Cavid Gulaliyev, allegedly assaulting another inmate.

His demands included an end to torture and discrimination within the facility, improved sanitary conditions in solitary confinement, and medical treatment for co-accused Toplum TV co-founder Alesger Mammadli.

In his statement, Mr Babayev claimed the protest had achieved "small successes", stating that the head of the detention centre, Elnur Ismayilov, had promised that no further beatings of inmates would take place.

He also claimed that most of Mr Gulaliyev's duties had been reassigned to a different official.

The Azerbaijani Penitentiary Service has not commented on Mr Babayev's statements or the allegations of abuse. The government has previously stated that all detainees are treated in strict accordance with the law.

Mr Babayev is one of 10 journalists and activists arrested since March 2024 in connection with a criminal case targeting Toplum TV, an independent Azerbaijani news outlet, and the IDI.

Those detained were initially charged with smuggling, but the prosecution subsequently added more severe charges, including illegal entrepreneurship, tax evasion, and money laundering.

The defendants, who currently remain on trial, face up to 12 years in prison if convicted. All of them reject the charges, describing them as politically motivated attempts to silence independent journalism and civic activism.

Local human rights groups estimate that there are currently around 340 political prisoners held in Azerbaijan.

The government in Baku consistently denies holding political prisoners, maintaining that no one is prosecuted for their professional activities or political beliefs, and that all detainees are charged with specific criminal offences.