Jailed Toplum TV journalist rejects proposed 13-year sentence

Farid Ismayilov

A jailed Azerbaijani journalist has written an open letter from prison strongly rejecting a prosecutor’s demand for a 13-year sentence, saying that the state has effectively criminalised journalism.

Farid Ismayilov, a reporter for the independent online media outlet Toplum TV, was among several media figures and political activists arrested in a sweeping crackdown.

During a hearing at the Baku Grave Crimes Court on 8 June 2026, the state prosecutor demanded lengthy prison sentences for 10 defendants, totalling 130 years in prison.

In his letter, sent from his pre-trial detention facility in the capital Baku, Ismayilov said his investigative reporting had been treated as evidence of a conspiracy.

In the pile of papers called a criminal case, it is written that I am an investigative journalist of an organised group, and the investigation authorities have evaluated my investigative materials as evidence," Ismayilov wrote. "This fact is proof of why I am arrested."

He added that his work at Toplum TV focused on public interest stories, including protests in regional villages, corruption in the state budget, and holding politicians to account.

Ismayilov also pointed to his coverage of the UN Climate Change Conference (COP29) hosted in Baku in late 2024, during which he interviewed government officials about human rights.

I interviewed presidential assistant Hikmet Hajiyev, and this led to my arrest," he said. "I extended a microphone to Hajiyev, not a weapon; I did not kill him, I asked him a question."

The journalist compared his proposed 13-year sentence to punishments for violent crimes under Azerbaijani law, noting that inciting terrorism carries a five-year sentence, while hijacking a plane carries up to eight years.

He also highlighted the case of Alesger Mammadli, a prominent media expert and Toplum TV co-founder, for whom the prosecutor has demanded a 15-year sentence.

If media expert Alesger Mammadli had provided training for terrorist purposes instead of legal training, he would have faced up to 10 years in prison, not 15," Ismayilov said.

I am proud of my activities at Toplum TV," he added. "I do not see any reason to regret. I am absolutely not afraid of this government's trial."

The Toplum TV case began in March 2024 when police raided the offices of the independent platform and its partner organisation, the Institute of Democratic Initiatives (IDI).

At the time, authorities claimed to have found substantial sums of cash in the office and the homes of those arrested, initially charging them with smuggling.

The charges were later upgraded to include money laundering, tax evasion, and illegal entrepreneurship, which the defendants and local rights groups say were fabricated.

The prosecutor has asked the court to confiscate the defendants' properties, including cars and homes, to pay a civil claim of 79,440 Azerbaijani manat ($46,700) to the State Tax Service.

The defendants deny all charges, maintaining that the prosecution is politically motivated and designed to silence the country’s remaining independent media voices.