Hafiz Babali, economics editor for independent news agency Turan and a freelance reporter for anti-corruption investigative outlet Abzas Media, has been detained since December 2023 on multiple financial charges in relation to alleged receipt of Western donor funding.
Babali is one of at least 16 journalists and media workers – 15 of whom CPJ reported on in November and one whose case we confirmed in mid-December – charged with serious crimes between late 2023 and December 1, 2024, in a major crackdown on the independent press and civil society in Azerbaijan.
In November 2023, police in Azerbaijan’s capital, Baku, arrested four Abzas Media journalists: director Ulvi Hasanli, project coordinator Mahammad Kekalov, chief editor Sevinj Vagifgizi, and reporter Nargiz Absalamova. A court ordered all four to be held in pretrial detention on charges of conspiring to smuggle a large sum of money into the country, after police claimed to find 40,000 euros (US$42,040) during a search of the outlet’s office.
On November 28, Azerbaijan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs summoned the U.S., German, and French envoys and accused their embassies and organizations registered in those countries of illegally funding Abzas Media.
On December 13, Baku police arrested Babali on the same currency smuggling charges, searched his home, and confiscated the journalist’s computer, cell phone, and documents. A sixth Abzas Media journalist was arrested in January.
Abzas Media is one of three major outlets – including Toplum TV and Kanal 13 – from among Azerbaijan’s last remaining independent media targeted over alleged receipt of Western donor money between late 2023 and December 1, 2024. The crackdown has been linked to a decline in Azerbaijani-Western relations.
Babali and his colleagues have denied the charges. A statement issued by Abzas Media said the charges were retaliation by Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev for “a series of investigations into the corruption crimes committed by the president of the country and his appointed officials.”
In August 2024 authorities brought seven new economic crime charges against the Abzas journalists, including money laundering and tax evasion. The new charges increase the maximum prison sentence the journalists could face to up to 12 years.
As of early December 2024, Babali remains at the Baku Pretrial Detention Center, Abzas Media’s acting chief editor Leyla Mutsfayeva told CPJ, adding that the journalist experienced problems with his eyesight and pain in his leg but was not receiving adequate treatment.
CPJ emailed the Penitentiary Service of Azerbaijan for comment in late 2024, but did not receive a reply.