New York, April 8, 2026—The Committee to Protect Journalists condemns the Azerbaijani Supreme Court’s April 3 decision to uphold lengthy prison sentences for six journalists from the independent media outlet Abzas Media and a correspondent for U.S. Congress-funded Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RL). CPJ calls on the authorities to immediately release all journalists wrongly jailed during the country’s ongoing press freedom crackdown.
The six journalists from Abzas Media, widely regarded as Azerbaijan’s most prominent anticorruption investigative outlet, were detained in 2023-2024 on charges linked to the alleged receipt of illegal Western donor funding. In June 2025, a court in Baku found them guilty of acting as an organized group to commit multiple financial crimes, including currency smuggling, money laundering, and tax evasion. The court sentenced director Ulvi Hasanli, editor-in-chief Sevinj Vagifgizi (Abbasova), and journalist Hafiz Babali to nine years in prison each, and reporters Nargiz Absalamova and Elnara Gasimova to eight years each. The outlet’s project coordinator Mahammad Kekalov was given seven years and six months. All denied the charges.
Following the court decision on April 3, the journalists planned to file a complaint with the European Court of Human Rights, according to Gunel Safarova, exiled acting director and editor-in-chief of Abzas Media.
Also on April 3, the same court rejected the appeal of Farid Mehralizada, from RFE/RL’s Azerbaijani service, who is currently serving a nine-year sentence as part of the same trial.
“By denying the appeal of the Abzas Media and RFE/RL journalists, the authorities may think they are putting the final nail in the coffin of independent media,” said Gulnoza Said, Europe and Central Asia program coordinator. “They are clearly afraid of reports on high-level official corruption in Azerbaijan. If they have nothing to hide, the authorities must stop the repression and release all imprisoned journalists. Foreign governments should prioritize press freedom and the release of imprisoned journalists in their dealings with officials in Baku.”
Police raided Abzas Media’s office in 2023 and said they found 40,000 euros (US$46,800), accusing U.S., French, and German embassies of funding the outlet illegally.
The journalists are among at least 24 journalists currently jailed in Azerbaijan, most of them detained on charges of receiving funds from Western donors since late 2023, amid a decline in relations with the West.
Azerbaijani law requires civil society groups to obtain state approval for foreign grants, which authorities accused the outlets of failing to do. In rulings on similar cases, the European Court of Human Rights stressed that such an omission was punishable under Azerbaijani law by fines, not criminal sanctions. Independent experts say that authorities refuse to register independent organizations seeking foreign grants, making it impossible to legally receive the funding.
CPJ emailed the prosecutor general’s office for comment but did not receive a reply.